First Minister John Swinney’s speech at the Robert Gordon University

Good afternoon,

In less than two weeks’ time people in Scotland will be going to the polls for the Westminster general election.

Eight years ago voters were waking up to the result of another poll – the Brexit referendum.

In that referendum people in Scotland voted overwhelmingly by a margin on 24 points to remain in the EU.

There were majorities for remain in every one of Scotland’s local authority areas.

But Scotland was taken out anyway.

And we have been left to deal with the consequences not just of a Brexit we didn’t vote for – but a hard Brexit.

Our businesses have been taken out of the huge European Single Market.

We’ve lost access to the EU Customs Union and its trade deals.

And freedom of movement has ended – a truly disastrous outcome for Scotland with our distinctive population challenge.

That was the Tory hard Brexit imposed on Scotland.

At this election Labour is offering no real change.

Keir Starmer says, just like Boris Johnson did, that he wants to keep both Scotland and the UK out of the EU, out of the Single Market, out of the Customs Union and out of freedom of movement.

And his deputy Angela Rayner has gone further.

She’s said during this campaign that Labour will never – never – rejoin either the EU or the Single Market.

Given the damage that Brexit has caused it is absolutely astonishing that none of the Westminster parties are interested in repairing that damage.

They say they prioritise economic growth.

But you can’t be a party of Brexit and a party of growth.

So to the people of Scotland considering how to cast your vote on July 4 listen to what the Westminster parties are openly telling you:

A vote for the Tories is a vote for continued Brexit damage.

And a vote for Labour is a vote for continued Brexit damage.

That means the Westminster parties have turned their back on Scotland’s interests.

Because Scotland’s interests lie firmly in being part of the European Union.

And it is now crystal clear – from the words of the Westminster parties themselves – that is only by becoming an independent country that Scotland will ever regain the benefits of EU membership.

The result of the Brexit referendum and its fall-out wasn’t just however about our relationship with Europe.

It told us something fundamental about the United Kingdom too.

It demonstrated that the UK is not a partnership of equal nations.

The fact that Scotland voted to remain ultimately mattered not one jot to Westminster.

That’s not equality – it’s a “know your place” attitude.

And the way Scotland is being treated over Brexit is symptomatic of a wider “Westminster knows best” union, whatever the cost to Scotland.

While yesterday was the anniversary of the Brexit vote, today is the anniversary of people in Scotland waking up to the new reality.

The reality not just that we were about to be dragged out of the EU against our will.

But the reality that Scotland’s voice simply does not matter to the Westminster establishment.

The myth of the union of equals was extinguished for so many people across Scotland on this day 8 years ago.

And while some time may have passed – nothing has changed.

Scotland’s voice is still ignored and our democratic choices are still disrespected.

We see Westminster politicians take campaign trips north of the border to sneer at the very idea that Scotland can have real, genuine influence at Westminster.

That is the reality of this unequal Union.

It is a reality that was made clear on this day eight years ago – and it is a reality that Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer are reinforcing every single day of this campaign.

So I am asking people to vote SNP if you believe it is best for Scotland’s future to be back in the European Union.

I am asking you to vote SNP if you believe that decisions about Scotland should be taken in Scotland.

I am asking you to vote SNP to put Scotland’s interests first.

During the course of this election the Conservatives have quite spectacularly fallen apart.

In England it is 100 per certain that Labour will win.

Here in Scotland the SNP is the main challenger to the Tories in every Conservative held seat.

So if you want to see the back of the Tories the answer is to vote SNP.

But we won’t see the back of Brexit when Labour wins south of the border.

Because just as there is a conspiracy of silence between the Westminster parties on their plans for cuts, there is a just as dangerous conspiracy of silence between the two on Brexit.

Both Labour and the Tories are committed to the same extreme Brexit and are resolutely opposed to respecting Scotland’s choice.

But they do not want to talk about it – it is the elephant in the room at this election.

And that’s important.

Because in many parts of Scotland there is a real contest between the SNP and Labour.

As First Minister I cannot sit back and accept the damage of Brexit that Labour will continue to impose.

That will hurt too many people, it will hurt public services and it will hurt businesses.

I won’t be silent on our internationalist values and the idea of European co-operation to meet the great challenges of our time.

I, and the SNP, are giving a voice to those values and I believe it is essential that they are represented and heard in the House of Commons after July 4th.

So today I will talk briefly about the impact of Brexit.

On the economy.

On the NHS.

And on the missed opportunities for our young people in particular.

But I want to talk also about a hopeful, optimistic better future for Scotland.

So I will outline the benefits for Scotland of being back in the EU – as a member state in our own right for the very first time.

And I will set out what I believe are the benefits for the EU from having Scotland as a member state.

So firstly the economic impact.

It’s been estimated by the National Institute for Economic and Social Research that the UK economy is already 2.5 pc smaller than it would otherwise would have been.

Other estimates are higher.

But taking this lower estimate that would mean around £69 billion has been wiped from the economy.

That in turn means £28 billion less in tax revenues that could have been invested in public services like the NHS.

For Scotland it means a loss of £2.3 billion in public revenue.

Given that the Scottish Parliament controls around 60 per cent of spending that means that at a conservative estimate we have around £1.6 billion less to spend on the NHS and other public services in Scotland because of Brexit.

To put that into context, £1.6 billion is the equivalent of more than one in six of our NHS staff.

It is more than what we currently spend on delivering free tuition for Scottish students, concessionary bus travel, EMA, the School Clothing Grant, the Baby Box and mitigating the Bedroom Tax combined.

Just imagine the difference we could make with that revenue – but it has been ripped away from Scotland as the cost of a Brexit we did not vote for.

That is a disgrace – and every unionist politician who has allowed this to happen should hang their head in shame.

Given this devastating impact it is hard to believe that none of the Westminster parties want to acknowledge that damage let alone reverse it.

This is particularly the case as last week the Institute for Fiscal Studies said that in the event of the UK rejoining the EU the SNP’s assumption of a boost to economic growth and a consequent revenue increase of around £30 billion a year for the UK was not “an unreasonably high figure.”

It is not just the loss of funding for our NHS and other public services which is the issue.

A combination of loss of freedom of movement and a crackdown on overseas care workers is making it harder to recruit staff for care homes.

At a time when the cost of living is biting hard, Brexit has caused food prices to rise.

Key Scottish industries are suffering.

It’s estimated Brexit red tape has cost Scottish salmon producers up to £100m,

For our service industries we’ve lost mutual recognition of professional qualifications.

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Scotland’s fishing communities, like those here in the North- East have been sold out by Westminster once again.

The damage has seeped through to many aspects of Scottish life.

But let me spend some time talking about the impact on young people in particular.

They’ve lost the right to live and work in 27 other European countries because of the end of freedom of movement.

And in an act of educational and cultural vandalism the UK has pulled out of the Erasmus+ plus scheme which benefited so many young people.

Membership of that programme helped to transform the lives of thousands of our students, schoolchildren, teachers, adult learners and young people.

Through Erasmus+, students, staff and young people from EU countries get to experience other cultures and life abroad, improve their language and soft skills, improve their career opportunities and enhance their personal development.

It increases people’s employability.

And the benefits are felt most for participants coming from the most deprived areas and those furthest removed from traditional education.

The scheme provides support for people from disadvantaged backgrounds to travel and study abroad.

They can study or participate in vocational training and professional development in other countries.

They can travel and volunteer.

It is in short a brilliant opportunity.

It’s an opportunity no longer available to Scotland’s young people because the Westminster parties are determined to continue with Brexit – whatever the cost.

That is shameful.

So Brexit has worsened the cost of living crisis, it’s hit the economy, it’s hit the funding that could have been spent on the NHS and it’s cost young people the opportunities available to 27 other European countries.

But let me turn now to a more optimistic future: the benefits of Scotland being a member of the EU.

Crucially we would for the very first time be a member state in our own right.

That would mean being part of the world’s largest single market.

We would have access to the EU’s trade deals with countries across the globe.

Indeed we would help to shape future deals in Scotland’s interest.

We would have protection for the rights and interests of workers and their families – free from the threat of any future right wing Westminster government.

Our businesses would have the ability to attract and retain people from across the EU to sustain competitive.

We would be in partnership to combat crime with access again to the European Arrest Warrant.

EU membership would mean that artists and creative professionals could move freely between Scotland and the rest of the EU, without barriers like visa and customs requirements.

Being a member of the EU also brings benefits to the daily lives of EU citizens.

Back in the EU, Scottish holiday-makers will be fast-tracked across EU borders and will be able to use their driving licences throughout the bloc.

Scotland also has an important contribution to make to the European Union.

As we are here today in the North-East I will focus on one aspect of that contribution – energy.

Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine has led many EU member states to substantially reduce their reliance on imports of Russian oil and gas.

Scotland’s abundant renewable energy resources mean we are a reliable supplier of clean energy.

That in turn will mean we would be able to contribute to the EU’s energy security and transition to a low-carbon society.

As an EU member state, Scotland could therefore help the European Union achieve its net zero ambitions and climate change goals

We could have a huge role to play in EU ambitions for carbon capture and storage.

We nearly 20 per cent of Europe’s potential storage, the oil and gas infrastructure and a skilled workforce.

It is an incredible strategic asset that we want to share with our fellow European partners as we collectively tackle the climate emergency.

We have great green hydrogen potential and our academic sector – with universities such as this – is a leading source of innovation and research and could help deliver new technologies of EU-wide importance.

Towards the start of my remarks this morning I spoke about what Brexit had revealed about the nature of the UK.

I believe that an independent Scotland in the EU would have a better relationship with our closest friends in the rest of the UK.

Scotland could act as a bridge between the rest of the UK and the European Union.

If a future UK government wanted a closer relationship with the EU we would be a strong supporter and a source of help.

Since the Brexit referendum, Westminster has frequently over-ridden the wishes of the Scottish Parliament in devolved policy areas.

We could replace that trend with a genuine partnership based on equality.

That, I believe, is a much better basis for a strong relationship than the one that exists now.

So to sum up, I’m asking you to vote SNP if you believe Brexit was a mistake.

I’m asking you to vote SNP if you believe a strong pro- European voice is important in the House of Commons.

I’m asking you to vote SNP if you believe that Scotland’s interests are best served by being part of the EU and its huge Single Market.

I’m asking you to vote SNP if you believe in a future made in Scotland, for Scotland.

Thank-you.