I will never cosy up to Nigel Farage and his toxic rhetoric, writes John Swinney

Ordinarily, this would be published much later in the year – but I’ve brought it forward to ensure we can act now to deliver on people’s priorities and to allow a full year of delivery before the Scottish Parliament elections.

Times are still tough for too many people, and it is so important to me that people across the country know that my government is focussed – fully and entirely – on their priorities, and that I as First Minister am on their side.

Since taking office a year ago, I have heard loud and clear what people have been telling us about access to the NHS.  While many people will tell me about their positive experiences of world-class care, there are in too many cases difficulties in accessing that care.

That is particularly true when it comes to trying to get a GP appointment which causes real frustration for people. So we’ve listened and we’re taking action to fix it.

Yesterday, I confirmed that my government will take a range of measures to change that, including plans to deliver an extra 100,000 appointments focused on key risk factors like high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

And I know that people are still really struggling with the cost of living crisis – with energy bills, food prices and other household costs still continuing to rise.

So I have confirmed my government’s Cost of Living Guarantee – a package of support for people in Scotland that does not exist anywhere else in the United Kingdom.

Under the SNP, people in Scotland pay lower council tax and water bills than south of the border, prescriptions will continue to be free, young people and older people will benefit from free bus travel, parents will be supported with a package of free childcare worth £6000 per child and university tuition will continue to be free.

And to add to that, my government is scrapping peak rail fares in Scotland – massively cutting the costs of people’s commute and keeping more money in people’s pockets during tough times.

I have set out the progress that I am determined to deliver over the course of the next year – and it is a record of delivery we can be proud to take to the country.

And the reality is, we see very clearly south of the border the consequences of a government that does not deliver for those who elected them.  The local election results in England were a chilling reminder of that.

Since coming to office, Keir Starmer’s government has let down people across the UK – scrapping the winter fuel payment, failing to bring down energy bills and cutting support for disabled people.

They have opened the door to Nigel Farage – and rather than standing up to his toxic rhetoric, Labour’s reaction to the spectre of Farage has been to act as a pale imitation of them.

Labour are mimicking their language on migration, moving ever further to the right and even leaving open the option of working with them at Holyrood.

I couldn’t be clearer – the SNP will do no deals with Farage.  We will never cosy up to Farage.  And we will never allow his destructive, right-wing approach to be normalised in our politics.

Only the SNP has the courage to confront Nigel Farage and his populist agenda head on.  And only the SNP has the strength to beat him and his toxic politics for good.

We will do that by delivering for Scotland on the issues that matter the most to people – improving access to GPs, keeping more money in people’s pockets and driving economic growth and opportunity for everyone in our country.

But we will also do it by delivering hope, with our vision for a better future of an enterprising, outward-looking and compassionate Scotland where everyone is supported.

It is those twin tracks of delivery and hope which has put my government and my party back on the front foot.

We are showing with actions, not words, that we are on Scotland’s side and over the next year, that is how we intend to continue.  We will focus relentlessly on delivering on people’s priorities and demonstrating an alternative to the broken Westminster model which is dancing to Farage’s tune and balancing the books on the backs of pensioners, the poor and disabled people.

We will take that message to all of Scotland – and next year, we can shift the tectonic plates of Scottish politics.