Greens try to hold Swinney to ransom… before he's even sworn in as First Minister!
The Greens have been accused of trying to hold John Swinney to ransom before he is even sworn in as First Minister after setting out a series of demands.
Patrick Harvie, who lost his ministerial job when Humza Yousaf ended the Bute House Agreement, yesterday said the new SNP leader must remain committed to progressive policies to tackle the climate crisis and inequality.
But it led to fears Mr Swinney’s minority government will continue to be dictated to by the Greens, despite the parties no longer being part of a power-sharing agreement.
The Greens helped force out Mr Yousaf after confirming they had planned to back a Tory vote of no confidence in him.
Scottish Conservative chairman Craig Hoy said: ‘The extremist Greens should never have been invited into government by Nicola Sturgeon and John Swinney in the first place. But no sooner has the man who helped broker the disastrous Bute House Agreement become SNP leader, than Patrick Harvie is holding him to ransom.
‘John Swinney must immediately rule out any pact, official or otherwise, with the anti-growth Greens, whose malign influence can be seen in the SNP’s gender self-ID policy, its opposition to new oil and gas projects, the botched deposit return scheme and the failure to upgrade the A9 and A96.’
Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater of the Greens, who lost their ministerial jobs when Humza Yousaf tore-up the Bute House Agreement
In his victory speech, Mr Swinney said he wanted to position the SNP in the ‘moderate centre-left’ of Scottish politics.
In a statement issued within minutes of the SNP confirming Mr Swinney as party leader, Mr Harvie, the former Zero Carbon Buildings Minister, said: ‘Scotland needs a period of stable government.
‘Mr Swinney knows if he is to have our support then it must be on the basis of progressive policies that help us tackle the climate crisis and build a fairer and more equal future.
‘Will they offer a progressive vision for Scotland’s future, or will they retreat toward the tepid middle ground, which would force them to rely on the Tories and other pro-Union parties?
‘There are a lot of important policies already on their way to delivery as a result of the Bute House Agreement.
‘We remain utterly committed to these policies and will oppose any move away from them or steps to dilute them.’
The Scottish Greens have offered to meet Mr Swinney to discuss how they can work together ahead of their MSPs convening to discuss how to vote when he is nominated as First Minister at Holyrood. Writing in the Mail last week, former Rural Economy Secretary Fergus Ewing said the SNP would be left with a ‘de facto’ deal with the Greens if Mr Swinney becomes the next First Minister, and that such an arrangement would be ‘a kind of Scottish Green Frankenstein’.
He said: ‘The green tail has been allowed to wag the dog for too long.
‘Last week, it was docked. But this week, it has re-emerged as a kind of phantom limb.’
Asked about the demands from the Greens at his victory speech yesterday, Mr Swinney said: ‘I’m sure there will be a lot of common ground between ourselves and the Scottish Green Party.
‘I don’t intend to return to a Bute House Agreement, I don’t intend to return to the type of fixed arrangements that we had.
‘We will take it on an issue by issue basis, which means that on some issues I’m sure we will be aligned to the Scottish Green Party, but I’m sure on other issues we will have to find support and agreement with other political parties.’
