Swinney: I have reunited the SNP and will take positive message to Scots

John Swinney said he has reunited the SNP after a “tough time” as he vowed to use the General Election campaign to “speak up for Scotland”.

The First Minister will fight the campaign just weeks after taking on the top job, and said he will take a “positive message” to people across the country.

He insisted he has reunited his party following divisions which emerged during the 2023 leadership campaign, which was won by Humza Yousaf but he only served in the post for 13 months before quitting.

The last 12 months have also seen dramatic developments in the ongoing police investigation into the SNP finances, while Mr Swinney and other senior figures in the Scottish Government, including former first minister Nicola Sturgeon, have come in for criticism for deleting WhatsApp messages during the Covid pandemic.

swinney: i have reunited the snp and will take positive message to scots

(PA Graphics)

Mr Swinney told BBC Breakfast: “The SNP has had a tough time over the last 12 months or so,” before saying he has brought the party “back together again in two very short weeks”.

He continued: “I’m just into the party leadership, I have been SNP leader for about two-and-a-half weeks and obviously bringing fresh leadership to the party.

“I have brought the party together already, the SNP is a united political party, we are uniting to lead Scotland and we are uniting to campaign for Scottish independence.”

He said he will now “use that unity to take a positive message around the country” ahead of the election on July 4, arguing the SNP can “protect” Scotland from “foolish and foolhardy decisions at Westminster, like austerity and Brexit and the cost-of-living crisis”.

Mr Swinney said he believes that message will “resonate to people the length and breadth of the country”.

swinney: i have reunited the snp and will take positive message to scots

Labour’s national campaign co-ordinator Pat McFadden said his party is ‘in good shape in Scotland’ (Victoria Jones/PA)

With some polls now showing Labour ahead of the SNP in Scotland, he conceded: “We have got challenges in this election campaign, I accept that,” but he said his party will be “going out there to win leadership in Scotland”.

He said the election has been called “sooner than expected”, but the SNP has candidates in place for all 57 seats in Scotland and its manifesto is “well advanced”.

He said: “We are hitting the road today to start the election campaign, so we are ready to go.

“I’ll be out and about around the country, I intend to take my message to every part of the country, I am the First Minister of all of Scotland and I intend to be present in every part of Scotland, taking a positive message about the fact that Westminster has inflicted significant damage on the people of Scotland through austerity, Brexit and the cost-of-living crisis.

“The way out of that is for Scotland to be a country that takes our own decisions as an independent country.

“People know that they can rely on the SNP to put Scotland first, that’s what will be central to our election campaign.”

swinney: i have reunited the snp and will take positive message to scots

(PA Graphics)

Meanwhile, Labour’s national campaign co-ordinator Pat McFadden said his party is “in good shape in Scotland”.

He told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme Labour “might have a few” candidates to select, but added: “If there’s anything like that to do we’ll do it in the next few days.”

Stressing Labour is taking nothing for granted in the election, he added: “We assume nothing, but the really critical thing is that power of the vote in Scotland to send much more than a message, to actually be part of sending a Labour government to Westminster.”

Asked about the prospect of deals in the event of a hung parliament, Mr McFadden insisted: “We are not doing any deals, the aim is for a majority.

“We know that that’s ambitious but we want to bring stability to the country, and I believe that voters in Scotland have got a critical role to play in this.”

swinney: i have reunited the snp and will take positive message to scots

Douglas Ross said the Tories can beat the SNP in ‘crucial seats’ north of the border (Jane Barlow/PA)

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said his party will “take the fight to the SNP”.

He told Good Morning Scotland the Tories will “beat the nationalists in crucial seats up and down Scotland”.

He added the election is “about improving our education system, investing in the NHS, it’s about growing our economy, creating good jobs”, adding: “In crucial seats it’s going to be a very close fight between the Scottish Conservatives and the SNP.

“Every party has been urging the Prime Minister to call the election, he has now done that, we are going to the country on July 4 and in the next six weeks, I will be out with my candidates up and down the country who are taking the fight to the SNP in these key seats, because they know the local priorities in their constituencies.

“They know that voters are fed up with John Swinney and the SNP’s obsession with independence.”

OTHER NEWS

21 minutes ago

George, Charlotte and Louis issue first ever royal statement with new Father's Day photo

22 minutes ago

Weather partly cloudy

22 minutes ago

Aston Villa transfer news: Why heroic Tammy Abraham return has no downside

22 minutes ago

Lakers News: Jerry West’s Legacy Honored by Former Lakers Champion in Emotional Tribute

23 minutes ago

With rain on the way, Lake Houston being lowered by a foot

23 minutes ago

Video: Dramatic moment armed German police close in on axeman near Euro 2024 fan zone in Hamburg before shooting him after he made firebomb threat just hours before Netherlands clash with Poland

25 minutes ago

Experts warn gardeners DON'T install artificial 'fake' grass this summer - here's why

25 minutes ago

Dramatic moment armed German police close in on axeman near Euro 2024 fan zone in Hamburg before shooting him after he made firebomb threat just hours before Netherlands clash with Poland

26 minutes ago

Peter Dutton’s plan to ditch 2030 emissions target would drive up power bills, Penny Wong says

26 minutes ago

‘I made millions for doing nothing!’: How rapper Vanilla Ice built a real estate and media empire — he's reportedly worth $20 million

26 minutes ago

Mavs knock on top-four door, extend Firebirds' misery

26 minutes ago

How to Debloat Windows 11 for Optimal Performance

26 minutes ago

Are Holland and Netherlands the same country? Here's why Virgil van Dijk's team are called by two names

26 minutes ago

Red Bull tipped to ‘walk it’ at Spanish GP under one key condition

26 minutes ago

Starting from scratch at 40? I’d use Warren Buffett’s golden rule to build wealth

26 minutes ago

Loving husband and father who was diagnosed with leukaemia in 1989 and infected with Hepatitis C through contaminated blood products was unable to recognise his own children after being 'abandoned'  by the UK's healthcare system

26 minutes ago

How David Beckham is swapping the bright lights of the A-list for idyllic country living - just like The Good Life's Tom and Barbara

26 minutes ago

Edinburgh studio flat with bunk bed in kitchen hits the market for an eye-watering £950 a month

26 minutes ago

Can YOU find the three broken suitcases within 30 seconds? Test your eagle eyes with this tricky brainteaser

26 minutes ago

Dave Cassin: Ultra-fit bodybuilder husband suddenly dies after celebrating anniversary

26 minutes ago

What England's axed Euro 2024 players are getting up to on their summers off from Marcus Rashford partying out in Cannes to Jack Grealish jetsetting off to Dubai

26 minutes ago

Two boats crash into each other and man thrown overboard as brutal gales plunge Isle of Wight annual yacht race into chaos

26 minutes ago

The 'David vs Goliath' court battles... where the little guy wins: How huge corporations like McDonalds, Vogue and Louis Vuitton dragged small businesses into legal battles in a bid to 'protect their brands' - but common sense prevailed!

26 minutes ago

Families' fury over 'awful' overgrown cemetery as grieving relatives are forced to cut grass and weeds themselves with scissors to access loved ones' graves

26 minutes ago

We live near to landfill site that stinks of rotten eggs - the stench is making our lives a misery and causing a spate of illnesses

26 minutes ago

Interactive map reveals the cheapest Spoons in London for a pint during the Euros for just £2.24 - and the most expensive

26 minutes ago

Andy Murray selected for fifth Olympics as Emma Raducanu turns down Paris Games

26 minutes ago

UFL championship game: Odds, how to watch Birmingham Stallions vs. San Antonio Brahmas

26 minutes ago

Southgate jumps to England star's defence after Keane and Rooney criticism

26 minutes ago

Injury set to rule All Blacks star out of Super Rugby Pacific final

26 minutes ago

Las Vegas Strip Sphere signs huge rock band for new residency

26 minutes ago

Why animal activists want to cancel the RSPCA

26 minutes ago

'Panda swap' confirmed for Aussie zoo amid boost to China relations

26 minutes ago

2024 US Open Leaderboard Live: Updates, score for golf leaders at Pinehurst Sunday

26 minutes ago

Ex Odisha Guv Bhandare passes away: Naveen Patnaik condoles demise

26 minutes ago

‘Stay away’: Barnaby Joyce urges businesses not to play politics after Voice defeat

26 minutes ago

IDF backtracks on Rafah tactical truce after Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir lash out

33 minutes ago

Ex-Eastenders actor turned Labour lord Michael Cashman makes grovelling apology to Rosie Duffield for branding gender-critical candidate 'frit or lazy' after she pulls out of election events over harassment fears

33 minutes ago

How Harry Styles fans are paying £20 for official guided tours of star's old haunts including bakery where he earned £6-an-hour and railway bridge where he 'had first kiss'

33 minutes ago

Horrifying new footage shows police ramming terrified runaway calf with their squad car down London street - as furious neighbours berate officers' 'heavy-handed' response