Failing to pass Budget Bill would cause ‘a lot of disruption’, Swinney warns

Holyrood failing to pass a Budget Bill would cause “a lot of disruption”, John Swinney has said, as he appealed to other political parties to work with him.

The First Minister said if the Scottish Parliament does not agree on spending plans by April 1, public services would not be properly funded.

The Scottish Government is due to set out its annual Budget proposals on December 4, but the SNP will need to seek help from other political parties in order to get it over the line.

The Greens or the Liberal Democrats are thought to be the most likely potential partners, but so far it is not clear which party will be more amenable to Mr Swinney’s proposals.

The SNP leader gave a speech at the Royal Society of Edinburgh on Wednesday where he set out his vision for Government, emphasising the need for collaboration and consensus in tackling the challenges facing Scotland.

Speaking to journalists afterwards, he was asked if he is engaging in the usual pre-Budget “brinksmanship” or if he is genuinely concerned the Government’s Bill will not pass.

He said: “I’m simply saying that if we don’t have enough votes, we don’t have a Budget.

“There’ll be a lot of disruption and on April 1 there will be no Budget plans in place that will afford public services at the level people expect.

“That’s the very real, practical difficulty that will be faced, and I want to avoid that.”

He also said he is ready to fight an early election if it became necessary – though this would not automatically take place if the Budget Bill fails to pass.

The First Minister was also asked about the Government’s longer-term financial picture.

Last week the Institute for Fiscal Studies said that despite a boost from the Chancellor’s Budget, there are tough fiscal choices ahead for ministers in Edinburgh and there will likely be little room for pre-election “goodies” ahead of the 2026 Holyrood vote.

He mentioned his own experience in managing public finances, saying: “We have balanced our budget, we’ve lived within our resources, we’ve delivered fiscal sustainability.

“So I appreciate that there’s lots of analysis and Excel spreadsheets and all the rest of it, but we’ve actually done it for 17 years.

“I kind of think that counts for something.”

During his speech, which was ostensibly billed as the First Minister “setting out his vision for Scotland”, Mr Swinney pressed other parties for support in the Budget negotiations.

“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.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP Willie Rennie said: “The SNP often reach out for support when they are in trouble and that’s certainly true now.

“There is a lot to fix with a sluggish economy, an NHS with huge waits, a social care sector on its knees and an education system under great stress.

“We will work in good faith because we do need to pass a Budget, but the SNP will need to make an offer that is big enough to make it possible for us to support.”