After attending the First Minister’s summit, the general secretary for Scottish Trades Union Congress has welcomed the talks but has warned against it simply becoming a photo op.
Roz Foyer, who sat beside the First Minister as he hosted a summit on the rise of populism yesterday, said she was glad John Swinney “recognised the collective effort” needed to “overcome the division of fascism”.
However, she has said more action is needed to prevent “the falsehoods of the far right”.
Speaking to The Herald after the event on Wednesday, STUC General Secretary Ms Foyer said: "Today's summit was welcome but this must be a process, not a photo-op.
"The threat we are facing to our democracy from the far right is real and tangible. We cannot ignore it nor sweep it under the rug and I'm glad that the First Minister - and all party leaders who were present - recognised the collective effort we all must play to overcome the division of fascism.
"Simply put: the status quo cannot hold.
"Working people are crying out for assistance and a change in their material living conditions. That means supporting workers to have decent pay with their public services fully funded and available to them at the point of need. The trade union movement will strive to achieve that and, in the process, highlight the falsehoods of the far right."
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Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar joined Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie and Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton at the summit, along with a host of civic and religious leaders.
Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay refused the invite, describing the event as a “talking shop”.
Attendees at the summit were asked to sign a declaration reaffirming their commitment to “safeguard Scotland’s democracy”.
The declaration stated there are “fundamental principles” which shape an understanding of Scottish Democracy, including “participation and openness, the sharing of power, accountability and equal opportunity".
Speaking at the start of the meeting, Mr Swinney warned of the “polarising forces” that he said were exploiting Scotland’s democratic “weaknesses”.
He did not mention Reform UK by name but previously said he considered the group far-right. Reform deny being far right.
“This gathering, ultimately, is about the quality of our democracy,” he said.
“It’s not about symptoms, for example, how people choose to vote, but it’s very much about identifying and seeking to understand deeper causes. What, at a deeper level, is driving disenchantment and polarisation?
“Where there are gaps and weaknesses in our democratic structures and within our wider society that anti-democratic forces can exploit?
“There might well be some finger pointing in the course of today, but I also hope that we have a sense of collective responsibility for the actions that we need to take to ensure that we protect, fundamentally, the values and the attributes of our society, and have a collective determination to do something about that.”
Mr Swinney said Scotland could not control “social and economic tectonic plates” moving around the world, but urged those who gathered on Wednesday to help find a Scottish-specific solution.
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