First Minister John Swinney today defied critics of his government’s record by announcing more spending commitments if the SNP is returned to office in May.
Despite underperforming across a number of policy areas, and his party embroiled in scandals such as the Peter Murrell affair, Mr Swinney’s party is comfortably ahead in the polls.
At his spring conference, Mr Swinney pledged new funding for childcare, homebuyers and GP clinics and was able to promise £11 million to help small businesses and Glasgow City Council recover from the Union Street fire.
As workmen dismantle what remains of the 19th century building, Mr Swinney said the government would cover the £1m cost of demolition.
It would also provide £10m to help those affected and ensure the council did not have to divert frunds from public services.
The blaze destroyed a number businesses and affected others in the immediate areas. Rail services at nearby Glasgow Central station are suspended until at least Wednesday.
“This SNP Government will underwrite the cost of clearing the site, meaning that not a single penny of the city’s public services budget will be lost in that task,” he said
“And we will do more – some businesses have been utterly devastated, others in the area are suffering real hardship.
“Today, I can announce a £10m recovery fund to support the council, businesses and agencies to help rebuild and renew that vital part of the city.
“Let me be clear today, we will stand by our biggest city in its hour of need – the SNP will do everything in our power to make Glasgow flourish again.”
Mr Swinney also committed more than £500m to boosting childcare provision if the SNP is re-elected in May.
He said the party would “extend childcare for every child in the country from nine months old to the end of primary school”.
Care would be worth more than £6,000 per year, said Mr Swinney, who explained that he had “heard the calls from parents across the country” who are “struggling to juggle work and childcare”.
He may also have been reminded that free childcare from nine months has been available in England for some time.
Mr Swinney said the improved childcare offering would be “backed by over half-a-billion pounds of new investment.
“We will deliver a brand-new childcare system that fits around families rather than expecting families to fit around the system,” he said. “And because parents’ work doesn’t stop during the summer holidays, neither will the provision of childcare.”
However, it will not be introduced until at least the beginning of the next decade, which could mean beyond the next election.
His other promises included increasing the number of GP walk-in clinics across the country to 30 and “up to £10,000 towards a deposit to give people the help they need to buy their first home.”
He said little about how any of this would be funded, given that economic growth is weak and various think tanks and research groups have warned that public spending will have to be cut by the new government.
His only comments on the economy were to claim that “Westminster is broken. It doesn’t generate enough economic growth. It doesn’t generate enough money for our public services”, which seemed to contradict his earlier promises.
Mr Swinney claimed that independence was within Scotland’s grasp and it would enable Scotland to benefit from its own vast energy wealth, “bringing down bills, delivering a just transition”.
The conference voted for a motion claiming that “with the fresh start of independence, Scotland can cut household energy bills by over a third [and] create energy savings for businesses of at least one-third”.
Critics have said such claims are not credible and the party has failed to produce any plan to achieve these promises.
Mr Swinney added: “With independence, we will have a seat at the top table of Europe once more. Choosing not the isolation and economic damage of Brexit, but instead giving our businesses the opportunity of trading freely inside the world’s largest single market.”
While the First Minister was the star turn, it was Westminster leader Stephen Flynn who delivered arguably the best quip by referring to Anas Sarwar’s past year as “Labour’s very own Anas Horribilis”, a play on the late Queen’s famous “Annus Horribilis” comment about the disasters of 1992.
Mr Flynn, whom some believe has designs on the leadership, admitted to Daily Business that the phrase was not his own. “It was written by someone in my team,” he said.
Commenting on the conference, Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said: “John Swinney’s speech was a stark reminder of what is at stake at the election in May.
“He has made it clear that every vote for the SNP will be presented as a mandate for another divisive independence referendum.”
source