The precedent set by the SNP’s 2011 election victory would break the “logjam” towards a second independence referendum, John Swinney has said.
The First Minister said there should be a “legal referendum recognised by all” on Scottish independence if the SNP secures a majority at the Holyrood elections.
Previously, he has said a “democratic majority” of pro-independence MSPs after next year’s Scottish Parliament elections should pave the way to a new vote on the constitutional question.
In a newspaper column published on Monday, the SNP leader called for the May 2026 Holyrood elections to be “a springboard for Scotland taking charge of our own destiny”.
He spoke to journalists further at the Kelpies statues near Falkirk, saying: “The necessity of independence is absolutely paramount and we’ve got to make that case in the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections.
“But there’s a logjam and we’ve got to break that logjam.
“We demonstrated how we break the logjam in the past, by electing a majority of SNP MSPs in 2011, and that led to an independence referendum in 2014.”
He invited supporters of independence to back his party in the constituency vote and to “demand independence” in the regional vote.
Asked whether an SNP majority was a high bar to clear, he said: “The way we break the logjam is to rely on the precedent that happened in 2011.”
Mr Swinney also said recent opinion polls had shown rising support for independence.
Since the Brexit vote in 2016, repeated prime ministers have rebuffed the SNP’s calls for another Scottish independence referendum.
Scottish Conservative deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said: “John Swinney is like a broken record. In a bid to silence internal critics of his weak leadership, he has thrown diehard nationalists some more red meat on the one issue they all agree on: independence.
“Ordinary Scots are sick and tired of the SNP’s obsession with breaking up the UK.
“The public want John Swinney to focus on fixing the damage his Government has done in decimating essential services such as schools and the NHS at the same time as making Scotland the highest taxed part of the UK.”
Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: “This SNP Government has lost its way and ran out of ideas – while one in six Scots suffer on an NHS waiting list.
“Despite that, John Swinney can’t end his own obsession with division and today has confirmed he’ll put Scots second to appease his own party.
“From the crisis in our NHS to the violence in our schools, the SNP has left every institution in Scotland weaker.
“This is not as good as it gets and in 2026 Scotland will have a chance to put a stop to SNP decline and vote for a fresh start.”
Alex Cole-Hamilton, leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, said: “At last year’s election the SNP took an almighty beating because people were tired of them obsessing over one issue. It seems like John Swinney is a glutton for punishment.
“Perhaps rather than focusing on what the SNP membership cares about, he should focus on what the country needs.
“The health service and the state of our schools has been neglected for too long because all the SNP care about is breaking up the UK.”
