FM to pitch for 'Tory-free Scotland' at SNP election campaign launch

At an event in Glasgow, the First Minister will step up his bid to challenge Labour for the party seen to be best placed by voters to defeat the Conservatives and win over undecided voters. He will say his party can win all the Scottish seats the Tories took in 2019.

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He is expected to be joined by SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn and address an audience of party candidates, activists and supporters.

Last year, the SNP conference backed the First Minister’s motion calling for immediate negotiations with Westminster “to give democratic effect to Scotland becoming an independent country” if the party wins a majority of seats north of the border.

In his speech today, Mr Yousaf will attack Brexit and its impact on the Scottish economy, saying only his party will ensure Scotland’s voice is heard at Westminster.

First Minister Humza Yousaf speaking at Glasgow University on Monday. Photo Colin Mearns/The Herald.

Polling analysts have said the SNP faces a challenge from Labour north of the border, and in October Mr Yousaf's party lost a by-election race in Rutherglen and Hamilton West with more than a 20% swing from the SNP to Labour.

Labour's Michael Shanks took the Westminster seat with 17,845 votes - more than double the number polled by the SNP's Katy Loudon - with some independence supporters switching party support.

At the last general election, the SNP won 48 out of 59 Scottish seats. With boundary changes coming into force at the next vote, Scotland will have 57 seats at Westminster.

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Mr Yousaf is expected to say: “The first step we take towards a brighter future must be to kick the Tories out. Let’s be absolutely clear here: Rishi Sunak is finished. The Tories are done – thank goodness.

“The damage they have caused to Scotland is unforgivable and this year we must take the opportunity to kick them out of Scotland completely.

“The SNP is by far the best-placed party to do that. In every Tory-held seat in Scotland, we are the party in second place.

“Today I am setting an ambition for the SNP to wipe the Tories from Scotland’s electoral map by winning all six of those Tory seats.

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“That is a big ask, but I don’t believe you go into elections unless you are willing to be ambitious.

“It’s also the case that in more than half of the SNP-held seats, it is the Tories who are in second place.

“So, to people right across the country, our message will be very clear: vote SNP for a Tory-free Scotland.”

Scottish Conservative chairman Craig Hoy said: “The Scottish public are sick and tired of the independence-obsessed SNP ignoring their real priorities, such as the economy and Scotland’s ailing public services, and trying to turn the next election into a de facto referendum on separation.

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“Voters know that the only way to shift the focus on to the issues that matter to them – and shut the door on Humza Yousaf’s independence plan for good – is to unseat SNP MPs.

“As Humza Yousaf points out, in swathes of constituencies across the country, only the Scottish Conservatives can do that.”

Today will be Mr Yousaf's second major speech this week as it attempts to get his party on an election footing.

On Monday he sought to win back Yes supporters with a message that independence would raise living standards and productivity.

During his address at the University of Glasgow, he made comparisons between the SNP, Labour and the Conservatives — including on the EU and migration - and released plans for industrial policy in an independent Scotland.

He also drew heavily from a report by the Resolution Foundation, which found that if the UK closed its income and inequality gaps to the same level as similar economies — namely Australia, Canada, France, Germany and the Netherlands — households would be £8,300 better off.

He told the audience: “If we use the same analysis for countries that are similar to Scotland — such as Denmark, Ireland and Finland — the difference for the typical Scottish household would be even greater. They would be £10,200 better off. That is the prize of independence.

“Not to match the performance of those independent countries overnight, no one is saying that, but to start catching up so Scotland’s level of prosperity becomes more normal, more like that of comparable nations. It is the UK that is the outlier.”

While Scotland has “extraordinary resources” and “key economic strengths”, Mr Yousaf said the UK economy is one of “low growth, low productivity and chronic inequality”.

He also launched an attack on the two main Westminster parties, kicking off a year likely to be dominated by electioneering.

“Both Labour and the Conservatives agree that the UK should be out of the EU and the huge European single market, and they both want to cut vital inward migration,” he said.

His speech followed a similar event held by Sir Keir Starmer, the Labour leader, last week. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has told journalists he favoured the second half of the year to hold the general election.