{"id":80660,"date":"2025-05-07T02:02:16","date_gmt":"2025-05-07T02:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/80660\/"},"modified":"2025-05-07T02:02:16","modified_gmt":"2025-05-07T02:02:16","slug":"swinney-says-becoming-scottish-first-minister-not-part-of-a-well-crafted-plan-the-irish-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/80660\/","title":{"rendered":"Swinney says becoming Scottish First Minister \u2018not part of a well-crafted plan\u2019 \u2013 The Irish News"},"content":{"rendered":"

John Swinney has said it is a \u201chuge privilege\u201d to be\u00a0First Minister, but accepted his rise to the top job in Scottish politics \u201cwasn\u2019t part of a well-crafted plan\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said he had considered standing for the post \u2013 and therefore also first minister \u2013 when Nicola Sturgeon stood down<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cI had thought about standing for leadership in 2023 but decided it was time for me to just take a different approach in life, so I stood down happily.\u201d<\/p>\n

Humza Yousaf succeeded Ms Sturgeon, but then he dramatically ended the SNP\u2019s powersharing agreement with the SNP at Holyrood, and \u201cevents took their course very, very quickly\u201d, Mr Swinney said.<\/p>\n

\"Papal<\/a>\"UK<\/a><\/p>\n

He had been \u201cadjusting to life on the back benches\u201d at Holyrood and had \u201cbegun to think\u201d about what he might do next when Mr Yousaf ejected the Greens from their role in the Scottish Government in April 2024, which rapidly led to his resignation as first minister and SNP leader.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvents took their course very very quickly,\u201d Mr Swinney told the PA news agency.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithin three of four days I was on course to becoming the First Minister of Scotland. Things move kind of fast in politics.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said that at the time he \u201cquite genuinely feared for the future of my party because of the situation that was prevailing\u201d.<\/p>\n

After being \u201cstruck by the number of\u00a0people and the range of people\u201d who contacted him urging him to run for the post, he put himself forward, and was voted in by MSPs at Holyrood on May 7 2024, before being formally sworn in at the Court of Session the following day.<\/p>\n

Mr Swinney said: \u201cIf you have devoted your adult life to the Scottish National Party it is quite difficult to hear that and not respond in the way I responded, by standing for the party leadership and to be the First Minister.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"JohnJohn Swinney was formally sworn at a ceremony at the Court of Session on May 8 last year \u2013 the day after winning a vote in Holyrood to become Scotland\u2019s seventh first minster. (Andrew Milligan\/PA) <\/p>\n

But he added: \u201cIt wasn\u2019t part of a well-crafted plan, it happened.\u201d<\/p>\n

However he stressed: \u201cI am profoundly grateful for the opportunity to serve Scotland in the way I have had for the last 12 months as First Minister, in a role I never envisaged I would be doing, and to make the difference I have been able to make.\u201d<\/p>\n

Elected as an SNP MP in 1997,\u00a0Mr Swinney is the only remaining elected parliamentarian in Scotland who voted in 1998 for the legislation brought in by Tony Blair\u2019s government that established the devolved Scottish Parliament.<\/p>\n

He said he was \u201cthe last one standing who actually went through the lobbies to vote for the Scotland Act when it went through the House of Commons\u201d, adding it had been a \u201cgreat experience for me to support that legislation and then to see it enacted\u201d.<\/p>\n

Recalling how he sat through all the proceedings at Westminster about the legislation, he added: \u201cAt no moment during any of those proceedings when we were dealing with the clauses relating to the role of first minister would I ever have thought \u2018that is going to be me one day\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it is a huge privilege to hold office as First Minister.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"JohnJohn Swinney said being First Minisetr could be \u2018disruptive\u2019 to family life, but added attending events together \u2018brings us a lot of joy\u2019 (Andrew Milligan\/PA) <\/p>\n

He only took on the role after considering the impact it would have on his family, including his wife, Elizabeth Quigley, who suffers from multiple sclerosis and their teenage son Matthew.<\/p>\n

Mr Swinney said he hopes the last year has \u201cbeen OK for them\u201d, but added: \u201cPeople would be staggered if I didn\u2019t say it is very disruptive to family life, being First Minister.\u201d<\/p>\n

However he said he and his family \u201cstick very close together\u201d, adding: \u201cWe spend as\u00a0 much time together as we possibly can do,\u00a0we try to configure things to be at events together.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that when his family accompany him to events he attends as First Minister, \u201cpeople are so extraordinarily kind and supportive\u201d, saying that while the job brings \u201ca lot of disruption\u201d there are also \u201clots of nice moments and upsides and that brings us a lot of joy\u201d.<\/p>\n

Looking back over the last year he said high points had been attending the funeral of Pope Francis in Rome last month, and being at a service in Normandy to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in June 2024.<\/p>\n

Mr Swinney recalled: \u201cIt was so dignified, so significant, so poignant.<\/p>\n

\n

On behalf of the people of Scotland, First Minister @JohnSwinney<\/a> has attended the funeral of His Holiness Pope Francis in Rome. pic.twitter.com\/1AIyxfz4Og<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Scottish Government (@scotgov) April 26, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cI said to myself, \u2018You must remember there are days of such significance as this on the days that are really tough\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

He also described the passing of the Scottish Government\u2019s budget earlier this year was a \u201clandmark moment\u201d.<\/p>\n

The First Minister said: \u201cThe Parliament was polarised, so the budget was an absolutely pivotal moment about the survival of my Government.\u201d<\/p>\n

The SNP lacks a majority in the Scottish Parliament, but negotiations with other parties saw the budget approved with the support of MSPs from the Liberal Democrats, Scottish Greens and Alba.<\/p>\n

However Mr Swinney said the general election results in July 2024, which saw his party return nine MPs, down from 48 in 2019,\u00a0was \u201cby far the toughest moment in the last 12 months\u201d.<\/p>\n

The SNP leader said: \u201cWe had tried very hard in the election, we had campaigned hard, I lost a huge number of really valued and respected colleagues.\u201d<\/p>\n

But he said the SNP has \u201cbuilt back out of that\u201d, adding: \u201cWe\u2019re now back in a position where we are leading in the opinion polls and we are back into winning local authority elections. We have just won five local authority by-elections in a row, so I feel that we are beginning to reconstruct the SNP\u2019s ability to win elections.\u201d<\/p>\n