John Swinney has urged his supporters to use the next election as a bid to “reinforce the case for Scotland becoming an independent country."
However, launching the SNP manifesto on the outskirts of Edinburgh, the First Minister said even if voters failed to back his party on July 4, they still had a mandate from the 2021 Holyrood election.
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Mr Swinney said it would only be “through the power of democracy that we will win our independence.”
“There is no other way,” he told the audience of candidates, activists and journalists.
He said that in 2021 Scots had “voted for a Scottish Parliament with a clear majority for independence and for a referendum.”
“That democratic choice must be respected.”
“At this election, we have the opportunity to reinforce the case for Scotland becoming an independent country.”
The manifesto reaffirms the position agreed by party members at their conference last October, that if the SNP wins the majority of seats “the Scottish Government will be empowered to begin immediate negotiations with the UK Government to give democratic effect to Scotland becoming an independent country.”
Mr Swinney said: “The best way to secure independence is through a democratic referendum. The obstacle to that is the intransigence of the United Kingdom Government.
“So what this election gives people the chance to do is to intensify the pressure to secure Scottish independence and to bring that about by voting SNP in order for us to achieve a majority of Westminster seats at the selection.”
Asked if failing to achieve a majority would mean he could not progress with negotiations, Mr Swinney said: “Well I'm not going to predict the outcome of the election.
“But what I'm going to say is that there's a basic democratic point.
“The Scottish Parliament was elected in 2021 with a majority of members within it committed to having a referendum on independence and wanting that independent country to be established.
“And I think that democratic mandate should be respected.
“And I think if we get to a point in the United Kingdom where we just have what I might call a casual attitude to respecting the democratic outcomes of elections, I think we're in really, really dangerous territory.”
“What I want to see happen is the respecting of the mandate that's been given by the people of Scotland to enable Scotland to become an independent country, and that should be at the heart of this election” he added.
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During the session, Mr Swinney also attacked Labour over their commitment to have debt falling as a share of the economy within five years.
He said this “adoption” of an “arbitrary Tory fiscal rule” would “bake-in more eye-watering cuts.”
The First Minister also pointed to comments made by Anas Sarwar at the Scottish Labour manifesto launch on Tuesday where he categorically ruled out hiking taxes if his party wins the next Holyrood election.
He said that would also lead to public spending cuts.
“That's a double whammy. So people need to be really aware of what the consequences of voting Labour.
“Voting labour in Scotland will get you spending cuts and that will be a disastrous outcome from the election.”
The manifesto set out the SNP’s own fiscal rules, including a “net worth test” for infrastructure investments. This would recognise "the value of investing in infrastructure and public sector assets, rather than just liabilities."
The policy prospectus also committed the party to demanding the “full devolution” of tax powers, including over national insurance.
It would also move to widen the current windfall tax to include companies outside the energy sector.
They also called for the reform of VAT saying that it is “wrong that suncream is subject to VAT, but caviar is not.”
There were calls too for the next UK Government to hold an emergency budget to “reverse cuts to public spending and deliver meaningful investment in economic growth, including green energy.”
This would include, the SNP suggested, the reinstatement of the £28 billion annually initially promised by Labour – before being dropped at the start of the year – on the green economy.
READ MORE: SNP in bid to extend franchise for Westminster elections
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak accused the SNP of only focusing on “constitutional wrangling”.
"They’re the ones that aren’t focused on what people care about day to day.
“They have already made Scotland the highest tax capital of the UK, and if Labour are elected, they would just do the same, hike up everyone’s taxes, just like the SNP have done.
“A vote for anyone who’s not a Conservative candidate at this election is just a vote for higher taxes. I don’t want to see that happen. That’s not how you deliver financial security.”
Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said the party was “woefully out of touch”.
“After 17 years of broken promises and decline in government, no-one is buying the SNP’s latest string of half-baked and unserious pledges,” she said.
“This is a tired party with no fresh ideas and the wrong priorities – but change is possible.
“This election is our chance to remove the Tories from office and put Scotland’s voice at the heart of government.”
Meanwhile, Alba accused the SNP of stealing their policies.
Alex Salmond said Mr Swinney's party were the “artless dodgers” of this election campaign
“They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Sadly though the SNP have failed to adopt the Alba strategy on achieving independence. The SNP’s current offering is a confused and continuing state of constitutional limbo for Scotland.
“When I delivered the referendum in 2014 it was because Westminster feared what the Scottish Parliament would do if the UK Government said no.
"No rational person believes that the SNP will deliver independence by losing 19 seats at the General election - as the bar in their own manifesto sets out.
“The dogs in the street know that Westminster is not going to agree to a referendum and only an electoral test with independence parties seeking a popular independence mandate can now deliver independence. "
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