SNP will focus on 'people's priorities' - Swinney

The SNP leader John Swinney has pledged to put the "people's priorities" at the heart of the Scottish government .

In his keynote address to the SNP conference in Edinburgh, he insisted he would still focus on convincing voters that independence was the "route" to delivering a fairer and stronger country.

But he warned that the Scottish government would need to work "harder and smarter" to deliver in the face of Westminster "cuts".

On Wednesday, the first minister will formally set out his legislative plans for the coming year in the programme for government after MSPs return to Holyrood.

John Swinney closed the SNP conference with a speech laying out his government's priorities

Mr Swinney was making his first conference speech as first minister since becoming SNP leader in May following the resignation of Humza Yousaf.

Within weeks he found himself leading the party into a general election which saw the SNP's tally of MPs fall from 48 to just nine.

In his speech he acknowledged it had been "an incredibly tough night".

"We've reflected as a party and we are learning the lessons of that election," he told delegates.

He promised to turn the SNP into an "election winning organisation again" and lead his party to victory at the next Holyrood vote in 2026.

In a closed session of the conference on Friday Mr Swinney he was recorded telling delegates the party had spent too much time focusing on the "process of independence".

His closing speech to the conference did not spell out a strategy for achieving another referendum but he won prolonged applause when he insisted independence remained central to his message.

Mr Swinney said: "My promise to you is that I will make sure independence is understood as the route to a stronger and fairer country.

"Understood not as nice to have – but as urgent and essential here and now. That is how we will make independence happen."

First Minister John Swinney met delegates during the SNP conference at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre

Mr Swinney said he wanted the party to look outwards rather than inwards and to speak to the people of Scotland.

He said they only earned the right to be heard when they were focused on making life better for them.

He said the government would "tailor support better to families" so they can "get the help they need" in what he described as sustainable and smarter policy-making.

He conceded that this would not have the same "immediate impact" as ending the two-child cap on some benefits - something the Labour government at Westminster has said it does not have the money to do.

The SNP leader added: "We will also prioritise our public services – including our cherished NHS.

"We will bring forward reforms to shift the balance of care to preventive and community-based support."

Labour 'austerity'

He said Labour was guilty of a "breach of trust" by announcing £22bn of spending cuts within weeks of its election victory.

He said it amounted to austerity with a "capital A" and predicted it would go down as an “era-defining moment”.

"So it falls on us, the national party of Scotland, to awaken that sense of optimism and hope among our fellow Scots," he said.

"To rekindle the imagination of our nation, to show them that a better future is possible, to unite our country to win our independence - that is what we have to do."

He spoke of seeing children who went to school with his son experience the same poverty he saw others endure when he himself was younger.

"Even in the toughest of financial circumstances, the SNP will do everything we can to give every single child the best possible start in life," he said.

Analysis: Focus on the whys of independence, not the hows

John Swinney’s conference speech did three things - it acknowledged the party’s painful general election result, set out his priorities for governing and attempted to refocus the arguments around the constitution onto the whys of independence, instead of the hows.

He was clear lessons would be learned from the election - but stressed it was now time to "move on together". It was a call - or rather an instruction - to members to finally put internal divisions behind them.

Mr Swinney’s speech included a reference to the public’s priorities. The SNP has been accused of spending too much political capital on socially progressive issues - at the expense of bread and butter ones like health and education.

There was a notable gear change when it comes to the economy. A focus on growth that some feel was missing during Nicola Sturgeon’s premiership.

And then there’s independence. The first minister said after the election the party had failed to convince the public of the urgency of it.

Today, there was no mention of a second referendum. Instead Mr Swinney’s strategy is to concentrate on substance rather than process, by linking the constitution to those everyday issues.