Nicola Sturgeon believes in John Swinney's 'secret plan' for independence
Nicola Sturgeon says it is right for John Swinney to set the bar high for next year’s election campaign
Nicola Sturgeon has backed her former deputy’s leadership of the SNP, saying she believes in his “secret plan” to win a majority at next year’s Scottish election.
The former first minister said it was right for John Swinney to set the bar high.
Ms Sturgeon spoke as she made an appearance at day two of the SNP conference in Aberdeen to sign copies of her memoir Frankly and take pictures with fans.
She said of her successor: “I’ve known John Swinney for a long, long time and if he says he has a secret plan, he has a secret plan.
“I’ve got confidence in him to deliver it.”
Mr Swinney said he wants to see the SNP win a 65-seat majority next year so he can call for a second independence referendum, telling members at his party conference “nobody knows” the tactics he will deploy
Ms Sturgeon said: “It is exceptionally hard, as I know from experience, but if you don’t set your sights high, then you don’t deliver.
“It is right for him to aim for a majority and it is important we get behind him in achieving that. I am confident in his ability to achieve that.”
Ms Sturgeon told The Scotsman she had “no doubt” Mr Swinney’s speech to conference on Monday afternoon would be “upbeat, optimistic and hopeful”. She said there was “great heart” amongst party members at the conference.
During her appearance at the conference, she also criticised both Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage.
Ms Sturgeon said she had “no confidence” in the Prime Minister, and she was “more disappointed in him than I thought I would be” since he took office 15 months ago.
“Instead of standing against Reform UK, he is going out of his way to legitimise Farage’s arguments,” she said.
“That is a fundamentally misguided way to be. He should be listening to why people are opening their ears to someone like Farage more so than they ever have before in my lifetime, and actually offer something that is better.”
Mr Swinney is due to make his official conference speech on Monday afternoon.
Scottish Labour constitution spokesman Neil Bibby said the First Minister “doesn’t have a plan at all”.
“You’d laugh if it wasn’t tragic for the people of Scotland to have a tired and out-of-touch Government, who are more obsessed with division than getting the basics right,” he said.
“The next election is about whether the SNP stays in government or not, not if they win a majority or not.”
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