John Swinney tells activists he will convince voters independence is 'urgent and essential'

Addressing the SNP’s annual conference in Edinburgh, the First Minister said his party was learning lessons after an “incredibly tough” general election result that saw it shed dozens of MPs.

However, he outlined no new policies in his keynote speech, and opponents immediately dismissed it as a “copy-paste speech from a First Minister out of ideas”.

Mr Swinney received a standing ovation as he paid tribute to his wife, Elizabeth Quigley, who has multiple sclerosis. “I can only lead this party, and be First Minister of Scotland, because Elizabeth is prepared to make the sacrifice of not having her husband around quite as much as she probably needs,” he told delegates.

Elsewhere, he indicated the Programme for Government on Wednesday, which will outline the Scottish Government’s legislative agenda for the coming parliamentary year, will contain support for families struggling with poverty.

Mr Swinney’s speech, which was delivered to a nearly half-empty hall at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre, was partly aimed at bringing his party back together after a bruising period for the SNP. He cautioned against turning inwards.

“We only earn the right to be heard when we are focused – not on ourselves – but on making life better for all the people of Scotland,” he said. “As SNP leader and First Minister it is my responsibility to make sure this is the case.

“I don’t want our party looking inwards – I want us to look outwards, speaking with the people of Scotland, serving the people of Scotland – proving we are the party best able to take Scotland forward.”

Mr Swinney, who took over in May, told delegates: “One of the conclusions I have drawn from the Westminster election, and a fundamental commitment I will make to you is this: never again will we go into an election with people thinking, I like the idea of independence, but that can wait because I’m more concerned about the economy, or my job, or the cost of living or the NHS.

“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.”

His remarks were met with applause and a standing ovation from party members.

Mr Swinney said the Programme for Government “will set out how we can tailor support better to families ensuring they get the help they need, when they need it, to lift those families out of poverty”.

Public services such as the NHS will be prioritised, he said. “We will bring forward reforms to shift the balance of care to preventive and community-based support,” Mr Swinney added.

He said his government will do “everything we can” to tackle the housing emergency, while his ministers will be “out there getting investment, investment, investment in the future of Scotland”.

The Scottish Government is preparing to announce hundreds of millions of pounds of public spending cuts on Tuesday, before the Programme for Government is delivered on Wednesday. It blames decisions made in Westminster.

Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: “John Swinney's attempt at self-reflection rings hollow while the SNP is continuing to dodge responsibility for its record in government.  

"Instead, it was a copy-paste speech from a First Minister out-of-ideas and more focussed on holding together his divided party than facing up to the challenges Scots face. The SNP’s cynical and dishonest election campaign was rejected by Scottish voters, but it is still sticking to the same script.

“It’s time for the SNP to wake up to the scale of the challenges facing Scotland on its watch – from record NHS waiting lists to a stagnant economy to a growing attainment gap. Year after year we have heard the same warm words from the SNP, but the spiral of decline continues.”

Scottish Conservative chairman Craig Hoy said Mr Swinney was “fooling nobody with his desperate attempt to blame anyone but the SNP for the savage cuts and tax rises his government is imposing”.

He added: “His pitiful speech lacked any sort of substance and failed to address the huge black hole in Scotland’s finances which has been created by the SNP’s own incompetence and decision-making.

“He has a nerve to bang the drum about wanting a less polarised national debate when all he spoke about was his determination to stoke up division by breaking up the UK.

“It’s no surprise that throughout the SNP’s woeful three-day conference, they failed to discuss their biggest failures in office such as education and transport.

“Despite receiving record block grants from Westminster, the SNP have run our public services into the ground and saddled Scots with the highest taxes in the UK while ditching universal winter fuel payments and pushing ahead with a wide array of other devastating cuts. That is why the public must remove the SNP at the next Scottish Parliament election in 18 months.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said the SNP was overseeing “spiralling NHS waiting lists and a stagnant economy”, adding: “While being wracked by scandal and division they have mismanaged vital public services.

"Yet John Swinney would rather keep the focus on breaking up the UK as solution to all of Scotland's ills. It seems the SNP have not learnt anything from the defeat voters handed them in the election.

"When I am out knocking on doors, no one is interested in wasting more time on constitutional clashes. They want to see action on long NHS waits, rising violence in schools and our disappointing economic performance.”

Chris McEleny, the general secretary of Alex Salmond’s Alba Party, said re-establishing the reputation of a competent Scottish Government was “vital to regaining the trust of the Scottish people”.

He added: “This is paramount to making the case for Scottish independence. The First Minister is under pressure to put independence on the back burner in response to the general election result - he must to do the opposite.

“John Swinney must put independence back at the top of the list of Government priorities and use the powers of the Scottish Parliament - just as Alex Salmond did -  to show the people of Scotland that when it comes to UK Labour austerity there is a better way.”