Swinney promises to 'be First Minister for all Scotland'

After three rounds of voting, Mr Swinney received 56 votes overall.

In the first round of voting, Scottish Liberal Democrats leader Alex Cole-Hamilton was eliminated with 10 votes, and Scottish Conservatives leader Russell Findlay was eliminated in the second round with 11 votes.

John Swinney's family in the public gallery at the Scottish Parliament (Image: Jane Barlow)

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar and Reform UK Scotland leader Malcolm Offord both received 17 votes, and Scottish Greens co-leader Gillian Mackay received 15 votes.

Accepting the nomination, Mr Swinney told MSPs that by electing a minority government, voters had "given us a specific instruction to work together".

He said he was confident of achieving a majority for "every ambition I have for this parliament".

"I look forward to working with many here to do so," he added.

However, he urged the opposition not to block "bold proposals" for "political expediency rather than for any substantial concerns".

He added: "There was a time when even I thought that negative politics worked into the bargain. But I am standing here today having won a resounding mandate from the people of Scotland because in this election, my party offered a vision of hope, ambition and optimism."

While the SNP were by some distance the biggest party with 58 MSPs, they were seven short of the overall majority that Mr Swinney had insisted would be a mandate to start negotiations for a second vote on independence.

The First Minister has since said his government can still make a push for constitutional change, as the record 15 Scottish Green MSPs elected meant there was "the largest pro-independence majority in the history of devolution".

"The Scottish people have yet again made their wishes known loud and clear," he told MSPs. "They want a more secure and a more prosperous, independent nation, one where decisions are made not in Westminster but here in Scotland.

"My government will continue to seek to abide by those wishes and again I look forward to working with many in this chamber to do so."

But he insisted he would seek to govern for all of Scotland regardless of the constitutional question.

"I want to make one thing clear to parliament and to the public today. I will work to be a First Minister for all of Scotland, a First Minister that works to bring people together with a strong sense of national purpose.

"The country I seek to build is a country where everyone feels accepted and able to contribute to our national story, a country where we seek to bring communities together, a country where we act to heal division, a country where we seek to find common ground."

Mr Swinney also paid tribute to his wife Elizabeth, who has secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. She and other members of his family were in the public gallery to watch the vote.

"Every day I'm supported in what I do by my wife Elizabeth who demonstrates a strength, a tenacity, a determination in the face of increasing adversity and challenge that is awe inspiring," Mr Swinney said.

"Elizabeth's approach to life is of itself a very valuable example of how to act to any first minister — especially her first minister. I literally cannot offer myself to be the first minister of Scotland without the sacrifices that Elizabeth is prepared to make and I acknowledge and thank her for that this afternoon."

Anas Sarwar and aides in the Scottish Parliaement (Image: Peter Summers/Getty Image)

During the vote, Mr Sarwar said the word he had heard most often during the campaign was "scunnered".

"People are frustrated, angry and tired, and they're tired of political arguments that seem disconnected from their lives. And that should concern every single one of us. Because if people lose faith not only in one party or one government, but in the ability of politics itself to improve their lives, then that not only undermines our democracy, but it opens up opportunities for those that seek to divide us."

Reform UK's Malcolm Offord said 47% of the electorate had not voted and challenged the basis of Mr Swinney's mandate.

"How can Scotland be led by a First Minister from the SNP whose share of the vote fell by another 10%?

"Consider the declining votes for the separatist parties combined — from 1.6 million in 2014 to 1.3 million in 2021 to one million this year.

"How can that ever be considered a mandate for separation?"

Reforms Helen McDade, Malcolm Offord and Thomas Kerr at Scottish Parliament (Image: Jane Barlow/PA Wire)

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said Mr Swinney should set aside the independence question.

"Will John Swinney continue to put constitutional paralysis above good governance? When Scots tell him that a referendum is not a priority, as they did in another poll published today, will he listen? I fear that he won't listen because independence will remain the only issue that really matters to him and his party."

However, there was support for constitutional change from Scottish Green co-leader Gillian Mackay. She said the election had produced "not only the biggest ever independence-supporting majority, but also the biggest ever majority for parties that are socially progressive".

"Those who lost in numbers at this election were the ones chasing those votes to the right and that has to inform what we do this session.

"We acknowledge that the SNP won this election and should have the right to form a government. We will work on issues with them to make Scotland a fairer, greener and independent country. But we will also hold that government to account to make sure that ambition matches delivery.

"We want to see a debate on the future of Scotland as an independent nation and I hope the First Minister will keep his promise to bring that forward as soon as possible. We have seen how badly Westminster has let Scotland down, making things much more difficult not just for this parliament but for the people of Scotland."

But Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton also called for independence to be taken off the agenda.

He said the SNP's failure to win a majority meant "talk of the constitution" should be put "in the deep freeze" and ministers should focus on issues like the "crisis in our health service".

He said this was not a crisis in hospitals, "but actually born of the fact that there is such a paucity of social care in our communities that on any given night in Scotland, 2,000 of our fellow Scots are stuck in hospital, like Margaret McGill, who I raised many times in the last session."

She was, he told MSPs, well enough to go home but unable to do so as there was no adequate care.

That meant Ms McGill was "stuck in that awful limbo which leads to cancelled operations, which leads to corridor care in our A&E because people cannot be discharged into the wider hospital."