"Good morning and a very Happy
New Year to all of you.
I hope you all managed to get a
good rest over the festive break - because friends, we've got a
busy year ahead of us!
I spent some much-valued time
with my family which was an absolute joy.
Of course, lots of people in
Scotland give up time with family over Christmas to help us
all.
We've had some pretty wild
weather in parts of Scotland in the last few days and I am
grateful to everyone involved keeping the country moving and
keeping people safe.
I also had the privilege last
week of visiting the Accident and Emergency Department at Glasgow
Royal Infirmary to see at first hand the pressures staff
face.
It won't surprise you to hear I
was really inspired by what I saw. It was busy and staff were
working incredibly hard and they were ensuring patients received
excellent care.
The public have clearly been
following advice on where to go for the best healthcare, so I
want to thank everyone for playing their part.
But let's take this opportunity
to thank all those who gave up time over Christmas to help keep
our vital public services running and keep us safe and
supported.
Before I go any further today, I
want to comment on global developments over the
weekend.
I am deeply concerned at the
situation which has unfolded in Venezuela.
There is no doubt that the Maduro
regime was an illegitimate and authoritarian
regime.
However, I am clear that all
nations must abide by the international rules-based system, and
having listened carefully to what has been said by the United
States administration in recent days, I cannot see how
international law has been respected here.
The international community must
ensure that de-escalation, diplomacy, and democracy on the
foundations of what follows the events of the
weekend.
Friends, we're here today to talk
about the year ahead for Scotland.
There's a lot we don't know
about, but one thing is already clear:
2026 is shaping up to be a very
exciting year.
This summer the Commonwealth
Games returns to Glasgow. We will get to cheer on some of
Scotland's finest athletes as they compete under the Saltire
right on our doorstep.
And, it's a year when Scotland
returns to the FIFA men's World Cup.
The whole nation will come to a
standstill in June. Even more so in July once we've seen off
Brazil and progressed to the knockout stages.
This is a moment 28 years in the
waiting – and I want as many people as possible to share the
occasion.
So friends, I can confirm today
that I have written to the Privy Council to make the Monday - the
day after our opening game - a bank holiday in
Scotland.
That will mean that supporters
across the country can watch our men's team in their first World
Cup match for almost thirty years, and share in the chance
for Scotland to be on the world stage, to attract business
development, to create tourism and hospitality interest within
the country and to make deep and lasting cultural and sporting
connections.
Let's make 2026 a year where
Scotland's sporting success brings our whole country
together.
As we prepare to cheer on
Scotland's sportsmen and women this summer, let us also be
inspired by them.
Inspired by what they've achieved
by giving their very best, by working as a team, by persevering
and - above all - by showing belief in what they are capable
of.
There's a lesson there for all of
us.
I want 2026 to be a year not just
of sporting success -
I want it to be a year of
opportunity for everyone in Scotland.
We've gone through a tough few
years as a country.
But despite those tough days,
there is a lot to celebrate in Scotland - and I know that we have
it within ourselves to overcome the challenges we
face.
This party - the national party
of Scotland - offers our country the leadership to make us the
very best we can be.
And this year, we are going to
inspire Scotland like never before.
We are going to offer Scotland
hope for a better future.
That starts by reminding
ourselves of the progress we are making as a
country.
Look at our health
service.
There was such an inevitable,
huge backlog after COVID.
But we start this year with
waiting times and waiting lists falling all over
Scotland.
GP numbers are
up
And last year, a record number of
hip and knee operations were performed.
A lot more still to do, but be in
no doubt - the health service in Scotland has turned a
corner.
And today we say thank you to
Scotland's magnificent NHS staff who have made that progress
possible.
Now look at
schools.
Last year, young people achieved
truly outstanding exam results
Literacy and numeracy in schools
are both at record levels.
Attendance is rising and teacher
numbers are up.
A lot more to do - but Scotland's
young people really are a credit to all of us.
And let us today congratulate our
young people on all they are achieving.
And now look at Scotland's
economy.
Think of all the headwinds
businesses in Scotland have faced in recent
years.
But business investment in
Scotland has reached a 20-year high
A 20-year high.
And if that's not enough to
celebrate, here's what two of the world's leading credit ratings
agencies recently found when they looked at
Scotland.
They awarded us the same
investment rating as the UK.
Higher than some big industrial
nations like Japan.
They praised the strength and
diversity of Scotland's economy and its strong institutional
framework.
And they cited the Scottish
Government's prudent financial management.
As our National Bard once said,
maybe it's time for us to see ourselves as others see
us.
A lot more to do, but when it
comes to the economy, let us today send a very clear message
-
Under the SNP, Scotland is, and
always will be, open for business.
Friends,
I can say more.
Child poverty in Scotland is
falling
The poverty-related attainment
gap in schools is at a record low.
Unemployment is significantly
lower than the UK average
Our renewables industry continues
to grow and grow – powering our green economic
future.
Scotland is by no means a perfect
country
But by goodness, given everything
thrown at us in recent years, Scotland has strong foundations for
the future under SNP leadership.
Increasingly the public see that
progress.
Here's what an opinion poll said
just before Christmas.
The poll asked people in Scotland
which party they trusted most on a range of
issues.
Listen to how the SNP's lead has
increased compared to the previous poll in June.
When it comes to which party is
most trusted to run Scotland's NHS, the SNP went from being 6
points ahead to 15 points ahead.
When it comes to managing schools
and education, the SNP lead has doubled.
When it comes to managing the
economy, the SNP lead has more than doubled.
And when it comes to standing up
for Scotland, the SNP are now 31 points ahead of our nearest
rivals.
That is testament to the SNP's
record in government. That is testament to the trusted leadership
we offer Scotland.
The SNP are getting on with
making Scotland a better country - and we're taking the people of
Scotland with us.
Friends,
2026 must be a year where keep up
the momentum and build on this progress - and that's what this
SNP Government will be doing.
Over the next few months we'll
begin rolling out a network of walk-in GP clinics across Scotland
to make it easier for people to access
healthcare.
In the coming days, we'll set out
the next steps to help more families get into affordable
housing.
And in our budget next week there
will be a major focus on helping households with the cost of
living.
We also have an election on May
7th.
That election is not just about
the next five years.
It is about taking the next steps
for the best possible future.
The chance to empower ourselves
to fundamentally address the biggest long-term issues facing
us.
We've all been on the doorsteps a
lot in recent months. Voters everywhere are telling us the same
thing.
The UK economy is
broken.
Living standards are flat as a
pancake.
Far too many people are living in
poverty.
Far too many people are
struggling to make ends meet.
Energy costs in energy-rich
Scotland are scandalously high.
These are the fundamental issues
holding Scotland back.
Anyone telling voters all of this
can be addressed with the current powers of the Scottish
Parliament is not being with straight with the
public.
And the truth is that with each
passing day, Westminster becomes ever-more distant from offering
solutions to Scotland's challenges.
The UK is lurching further and
further to the right.
Bad decisions like Brexit and the
spending cuts from austerity are leaving us all worse
off.
And the language in the UK around
immigration and asylum has become nothing short of
disgraceful.
That is why the vote on May
7th is so important.
In this election, there are those
who will seek to obtain power by spreading fear and
insecurity.
There are those who will seek to
divide us.
And there are those who don't
care about Scotland and instead seek to use the election to
further their own interests.
Not the SNP.
In this election, we will offer a
vision for a very different future for Scotland.
The Scotland we believe in is a
modern, progressive, socially democratic Scotland at the heart of
Europe.
A country built on the values we
share.
Instead of suffering under a
broken Westminster economic model…
…an economy built around
Scotland's immense economic strengths – one based on the
wellbeing of our people and our planet.
Instead of demonising those who
choose to make our country their home…
…welcoming those who enrich our
economy, our public services and our society.
Instead of enduring the isolation
and economic damage of Brexit…
…rejoining the European Union and
returning to the world's largest single market.
Instead of wasting hundreds of
billions of pounds on nuclear weapons…
…Investing that huge resource in
Scotland's future.
And friends, instead of watching
as Scotland's energy wealth flows to Treasury coffers year after
year after year
…Putting that immense wealth into
the hands of the people in every corner of
Scotland.
Bringing down energy bills for
everyone and powering Scotland's future economic
success.
That's what the powers of
independence offers Scotland - and that's why the SNP is offering
the chance to vote for independence on May 7th.
Friends,
When we are telling people of the
opportunities of independence, we will remind them of
this.
None of this is
untested.
For countries all around
Scotland, it's all perfectly normal.
Countries with far fewer natural
advantages than us - but enjoying far higher living
standards.
Let's at least match their
success.
The best thing we can do for
Scotland's health service…
…the biggest step we can take to
bring down energy bills across the board…
…and the best way to make daily
life more affordable for people…
…is for Scotland to become an
independent country.
Friends,
There is hope for a better future
for Scotland - but we have to go out and vote for
it.
And that time is
now.
To become independent, we need a
referendum that will be recognised by the international
community.
In 2011 Scotland secured a
referendum when the SNP won a majority.
It worked in 2011 - and it will
work in 2026.
So on May 7th, the SNP's aim is
not just to win - our aim is to win the overall majority that
secures Scotland the right to choose our own
future.
That is our task. It is an
ambitious task.
But friends, ambition is what
this party is about.
So let's get out there and make
it happen.
Let 2026 be a year when we
rightly celebrate all that we are - but also imagine what we
could be.
Where others sow fear and
division across Scotland, let us plant the seeds of hope and
ambition.
Where others try and tell people
in Scotland that they can't, let us demonstrate that
we can.
Let us build a national movement
for hope - one that reaches into every community in the
land.
Let us build a Scotland all of us
can be proud of.
A country all of us can call
home.
And a future in which all of us
have a stake.
A future made in
Scotland.
On May 7th, let's offer Scotland
trusted leadership. A renewed focus on the priorities of the
people. And a fresh start with independence."
