Swinney says Labour giving 'good impersonation of Tories'

The event at the Radisson Blu hotel also came after a difficult start to the election campaign for the SNP with the party's activities overshadowed last week by the suspension of former health secretary Michael Matheson from Holyrood for 27 days after he was found to have breached rules over his parliamentary iPad.

The mood among some of the activists present was tense with the BBC's Scotland editor James Cook heckled by members when he drew comparisons about the financial issues faced by an independent Scotland in light of the economic consequence of Brexit.

Mr Swinney urged members to remain respectful to the press as he pointed to free trade benefits to an independent Scotland from being an EU member.

But while criticising the Conservative Government and its policies including Brexit, much of his speech was devoted to an attack on Labour. 

“I’m not saying Labour are exactly the same as the Tories – they’re not. But they are giving an awfully good impersonation of them," he told candidates and supporters.

“The only substantive change Labour seem to be offering is to change their own core principles.

“Let me give you one really telling – and worrying – example.

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“Their health spokesman – Wes Streeting – the man who in a few weeks’ time will be the UK Government’s health secretary – last week set out his plans for the NHS.”

He said that Mr Streeting “criticised the Tories on the issue of the NHS and the private sector”.

Mr Swinney added: “Fair enough, you might say? Bad news. He was not criticising the Tories for using the private sector too much.

First Minister John Swinney is joined by SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn, who is standing as the candidate in Aberdeen South, and some of the party's other general election candidates at the SNP's campaign launch in Glasgow this afternoon. Photo PA.

“He was criticising the Tories for not using the private sector enough. He went on to say he wanted to go further than Tony Blair’s New Labour.

“And he wrote: ‘I want the NHS to form partnerships with the private sector that goes beyond just hospitals’.

“That sounds an awful lot like creeping privatisation of the NHS to me. The SNP rejects privatisation of the NHS whether that is Tory privatisation or Labour privatisation.”

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Earlier in his speech Mr Swinney said the people of Scotland “want rid of this disastrous, chaotic Tory government”, as he adding that voters north of the border wante a party that is laser-focused on their concerns – a party that is going to “help them and their families live happier, healthier lives”.

He added: “In other words, they want a party that puts their interests first. They want a party that puts Scotland’s interests first.

“And for the SNP – as the party of independence – there is a clear task they’ve set for us: to demonstrate why achieving independence is relevant, indeed vital, to their core concerns.

“So, let me take each of those in turn: removing the Tory government, putting Scotland’s interests first and winning the decision-making powers that come with independence.”

The First Minister, who succeeded Humza Yousaf in the role just last month, defended the Scottish Government's record and said it had “transformed lives” in Scotland.

He cited the abolition of tuition fees, free bus travel for under-22s, and said 40% more affordable homes had been created in Scotland than in England. He also literacy and numeracy had improved among primary school pupils.

He said: “Your SNP government has transformed lives in Scotland. And we have a record to be proud of.”

During his speech Mr Swinney told his supporters his party had to “demonstrate the relevance of independence" to the lives of Scots and how it related to their core concerns "like raising living standards and protecting the NHS".

“If we don’t then we are not likely to get much of a hearing in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis and, to be frank, nor would we deserve to," he said.

“So, when we talk about independence we need to demonstrate again, and again, and again, that we are talking about people’s core concerns like raising living standards and protecting the NHS.

“That laser-like focus on the daily concerns of people is our guiding star. There are some people telling me to forget about independence at this election. But you know what?

“After looking at Keir Starmer’s serial U-turns in the pursuit of power, I think people are crying out for political leadership that sticks to its principles.”

Concluding his speech Mr Swinney called upon voters to "vote for a future made in Scotland, for Scotland".

He said: “Let’s ensure the decade of destructive decisions at Westminster is never again visited upon the Scottish people.

“I ask people to vote SNP so that decisions can be made in Scotland, for Scotland.”

He said in his three weeks as First Minister he has brought together people of Scotland.

“I believe in our wonderful, diverse, inspiring country, that everyone should have a chance to get on in life, that we will achieve more for the common good if we draw together the talent that lives in all of our communities," he said.

“At this election, it is those principles that will guide my approach. So, I am asking people to vote SNP to remove the Tories from government.

“I’m asking people to vote SNP to put Scotland’s interests first.

“I’m asking you to work with me – in a strong, unified team – to encourage people to vote for a future made in Scotland, for Scotland.”

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said: “This was a desperate attempt by John Swinney to relaunch the SNP’s election campaign in the wake of his shameful mishandling of the Michael Matheson scandal.

“Predictably, he used it to double down on the SNP’s independence obsession, instead of focusing on the people’s real priorities – fixing our ailing public services and growing the economy.

“As he showed in the Matheson scandal, John Swinney will always put party before country. He had the brass neck to say he wants to bring people together, when he is pandering to his nationalist base and pitting Scot against Scot in a bid to break up the UK.

“Voters who have had enough of SNP incompetence and their endless sowing of division have the chance to punish them on July 4. In key seats across the country, only the Scottish Conservatives can beat the SNP and move the focus on to the issues that really matter.”

Shadow Scottish Secretary Ian Murray said: “Mere minutes into the SNP’s chaotic relaunch it was clear that it was shaping up to be a crash landing.

“Not content with lining up behind the Tories to attack Labour, conspiracy theorist nationalists decided to boo and harass a BBC journalist for doing his job.

“This is a dysfunctional party that is desperately clutching at straws as they await the reckoning of the Scottish people.

“With almost one in six Scots on NHS waiting lists, our public services in disarray and nearly half a billion of vital funding being handed back it is no wonder that the SNP has decided to attack Labour rather than defend its indefensible record.

“This election is a chance for change that Scotland cannot afford to miss.

“Only Scottish Labour is focused on the priorities of the people and only Scottish Labour can boot the Tories out of power.”