London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 10, 2025

John Swinney issues correction over SNP mandate for independence

John Swinney issues correction over SNP mandate for independence

Scotland’s deputy first minister backtracks after contradicting Nicola Sturgeon by saying majority of seats would be enough

John Swinney, Scotland’s deputy first minister, has issued a correction after sowing confusion over the Scottish government’s claims it could win a mandate for independence at the next general election.

Swinney told the BBC on Wednesday morning the Scottish National party needed only to win a majority of Scotland’s Westminster seats at the next election to have a mandate to negotiate independence with the UK government.

Asked in a BBC Radio Scotland interview whether a simple majority of Westminster seats would secure a mandate to negotiate independence, Swinney said: “That’s correct.”

But, speaking to BBC Breakfast on Wednesday morning soon after Swinney’s interview, Nicola Sturgeon said the SNP needed a majority of all the votes cast in Scotland to secure that mandate – directly contradicting her deputy.

“Of course as a matter of principle, Scotland will only become independent when a majority vote for it,” the first minister said.

On Tuesday Sturgeon told Holyrood that if necessary she would fight the next general election as if it were a “de facto referendum”, to force the UK government to negotiate.

Swinney issued a tweet two hours later retracting his earlier comments. He said he had misheard the question, adding: “Referenda, including de facto referenda at a UK General Election, are won with a majority of votes. Nothing else.”


This issue has become a central part of Sturgeon’s new strategy to secure independence, which she set out in a lengthy statement at Holyrood on Tuesday afternoon.

She told MSPs her primary goal was to win legal authority from the UK supreme court to stage a fresh independence referendum on 19 October 2023, without the UK government’s approval.

In a politically risky move, Sturgeon said the lord advocate, Dorothy Bain QC, had asked the court to convene a hearing as soon as possible on whether Holyrood had the powers on its own to legislate to hold that referendum.

Constitutional experts believe the supreme court will rule that this is out of bounds because the UK’s constitution is a topic reserved to Westminster. The UK government confirmed on Tuesday that it would not authorise one.

Sturgeon said that if the court ruled Holyrood did not have the powers to stage the referendum without Westminster’s approval, she would fight the election on the question put to voters in the 2014 independence referendum, of whether Scotland should be an independent country.

“If the law says that [a Holyrood-led referendum] is not possible, the general election will be a de facto referendum. Either way, the people of Scotland will have their say,” she said. In the 2015 general election, the SNP took 49.97% of the vote and nearly every seat.

Sarah Boyack, Scottish Labour’s constitution spokesperson, said: “This desperate claim from John Swinney exposes the SNP for what they are – obsessive nationalists who are hell-bent on gaming the electorate to suit their ends.

“It is deeply embarrassing for Nicola Sturgeon to be so publicly contradicted on the barometer for independence by her own deputy.”

Ciaran Martin, a former UK civil servant who helped negotiate the terms of the 2014 referendum and who is now a professor at the Blavatnik school of government at Oxford University, said a supreme court ruling was Sturgeon’s “best chance” of securing a referendum.

However, Lord Sumption, a former supreme court judge, told the BBC the court would focus solely on the law. “It’s actually a very difficult course that Nicola Sturgeon has charted for herself,” he said. “[The] problem is that constitutional relationship between England and Scotland is a reserved matter under the Scotland Act, which means that the Scottish parliament has no power to legislate for anything that affects the constitutional relationship between two parts of the United Kingdom.”

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
US Imposes New Tariffs on Brazilian Exports Amid Political Tensions
Azerbaijan and Armenia are on the brink of a historic peace deal.
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Weinstein Victim’s Lawyer Says MeToo Movement Still Strong
U.S. Enacts Sweeping Tax and Spending Legislation Amid Trade Policy Shifts
Football Mourns as Diogo Jota and Brother André Silva Laid to Rest in Portugal
Labour Expected to Withdraw Support for Special Needs Funding Model
Leaked Audio Reveals Tory Aide Defending DEI Record
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
London Stock Exchange Faces Historic Low in Initial Public Offerings
A new online platform has emerged in the United Kingdom, specifically targeting Muslim men seeking virgin brides
Trump Celebrates Independence Day with B-2 Flyover and Signs Controversial Legislation
Boris Johnson Urges Conservatives to Ignore Farage
SNP Ordered to Update Single-Sex Space Guidance Within Days
Starmer Set to Reject Calls for Wealth Taxes
Stolen Century-Old Rolls-Royce Recovered After Hotel Theft
Macron Presses Starmer to Recognise Palestinian State
Labour Delayed Palestine Action Ban Over Riot Concerns
Swinney’s Tax Comments ‘Offensive to Scots’, Say Tories
High Street Retailers to Enforce Bans on Serial Shoplifters
Music Banned by Henry VIII to Be Performed After 500 Years
Steve Coogan Says Working Class Is Being ‘Ethnically Cleansed’
Home Office Admits Uncertainty Over Visa Overstayer Numbers
JD Vance Questions Mandelson Over Reform Party’s Rising Popularity
Macron to Receive Windsor Carriage Ride in Royal Gesture
Labour Accused of ‘Hammering’ Scots During First Year in Power
BBC Head of Music Stood Down Amid Bob Vylan Controversy
Corbyn Eyes Hard-Left Challenge to Starmer’s Leadership
London Tube Trains Suspended After Major Fire Erupts Nearby
Richard Kemp: I Felt Safer in Israel Under Attack Than in the UK
Cyclist Says Police Cited Human Rights Act for Riding No-Handed
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Musk Battles to Protect Tesla Amid Trump Policy Threats
Air France-KLM Acquires Majority Stake in Scandinavian Airlines
UK Educators Sound Alarm on Declining Child Literacy
Shein Fined €40 Million in France Over Misleading Discounts
Brazil’s Lula Visits Kirchner During Argentina House Arrest
Trump Scores Legislative Win as House Passes Tax Reform Bill
Keir Starmer Faces Criticism After Rocky First Year in Power
DJI Launches Heavy-Duty Coaxial Quadcopter with 80 kg Lift Capacity
U.S. Senate Approves Major Legislation Dubbed the 'Big Beautiful Bill'
Largest Healthcare Fraud Takedown in U.S. History Announced by DOJ
×