Swinney and SNP are the ‘architect of divisive politics in Scotland’

John Swinney has been accused of being the “architect of divisive politics in Scotland”.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar blamed the First Minister for divisions in the country just a day after the pair attended a summit aimed at tackling polarisation.

The summit brought political, civic and religious leaders together in Glasgow on Wednesday to counter the far-right and protect Scotland’s democracy.

But Mr Sarwar said on Thursday that Mr Swinney, who chaired the event, is not the right person to lead the fight against division in Scotland because he is the one who created it.

Speaking during First Minister’s Questions at Holyrood, he said: “Yesterday I joined political leaders, faith leaders and charities at the summit against polarisation and disenfranchisement and as I warned at the summit, this cannot look like some kind of Scottish establishment talking to itself, distant from the realities facing Scots.

“But as I feared, what was missing was any reflection on SNP Government failure and how that drives people to divisive politics.”

Mr Sarwar accused the First Minister of burying his “head in the sand”, which he said proves why he cannot be the one to “fight against disenfranchisement and polarisation”.

He added: “The fact is the SNP Government has lost its way and is out of steam, and they are responsible for divisive politics in our country, so they cannot be the ones to sort it.”

He said the SNP had failed to deliver on the NHS, on homelessness and on crime, adding: “The gulf between the SNP Government’s rhetoric and the reality faced by people across our country could not be starker.

“So can John Swinney see that he and his party’s failures have made them the architects of divisive politics in Scotland?”

In response, the First Minister said he is “proud” of his Government’s record, which he said is “delivering for the people of Scotland” in a variety of areas.

“Families in Scotland benefit from having 1,140 hours of early learning and childcare for all three and four-year-olds and for eligible two-year-olds,” he said.

“We have a rising investment in our housing sector, tackling the housing emergency building on the fact that we have built more affordable houses per head of population than other parts of the United Kingdom.

“We have low unemployment in Scotland today and we have progress being made in reducing waiting lists and waiting times in the National Health Service.

“Crucially, on the issue that absolutely matters to me, we in Scotland are seeing falls in child poverty when they are rising in the rest of the United Kingdom.

“I fear that the progress we are making in Scotland is going to be damaged by the welfare reforms of the United Kingdom’s Labour Government.”

Mr Swinney said Labour’s benefit reforms will see poverty rise across the UK.

He added: “That demonstrates there is no point in the Labour Party because Labour delivers poverty and austerity to the people of Scotland when this SNP Government is reducing child poverty in this country.

“I will take that to the country and be proud of our records.”