Swinney challenges opposition to collaborate on Budget

First Minister John Swinney has challenged opposition parties to work with the Government to pass its Budget.

Speaking at the Royal Society of Edinburgh on Wednesday, Mr Swinney said Holyrood could “advance the prospects of the people of Scotland”, but only by working together.

The SNP is expected to be two votes shy of the majority required to pass the Budget when it goes before MSPs in the new year, with the most likely partners being the Scottish Greens – though less likely than previous years – or the Liberal Democrats.

In a Parliament of minorities, no political party is a mere bystander in the Budget process

In a speech ostensibly billed as the First Minister “setting out his vision for Scotland”, Mr Swinney pressed other parties for support to pass the tax and spending plans.

“In a Parliament of minorities, no political party is a mere bystander in the Budget process,” he said.

“More appropriately, they should be seen as partners, certainly that is how I have always seen them in my many years of negotiating budget Bills.

“I hope that is how they see themselves.

“Opposition for opposition’s sake is all well and good where governments have comfortable majorities, but put simply, in the Scottish Parliament today, if there is no collaboration, there is no Budget Bill.”

In a message to the other parties in Holyrood, he added: “We can choose to be mired in party politics, or we can choose to put first and foremost our duty to the people we represent.

“We can act with wisdom in the collective good, we can advance the prospects of the people of Scotland, but only if we are prepared to reach agreement to do so.”

In his address, the First Minister also said his Government would seek to take hard decisions to ensure long term improvements in the country, warning against “surface solutions” which may be easier and more politically rewarding.

“I’m not here to dictate from on high to those on the front line,” he said.

“I’m prepared to roll my sleeves up, and the sleeves of my Government, to properly understand the barriers to progress and to find solutions.

“In identifying those solutions, I am not looking for popular quick fixes or sticking plasters, I am here to do the hard work, to lay the foundations for lasting improvements to our country, our economy and our society.

“I do not pretend that this style of Government is headline-grabbing, but I do believe it is effective and, in the long run, I know the results will speak for themselves.”