Farage does not care about Scotland, says Swinney

Nigel Farage “doesn’t care about Scotland”, John Swinney has said, as the Reform UK leader is set to head north of the border.

Mr Farage is expected to address a press conference in Aberdeen on Monday as the race in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election enters its final days.

While the SNP and Labour were seen as frontrunners in the seat in a contest sparked by Scottish Government minister Christina McKelvie, Reform UK has entered the mix ahead of the vote.

But the party has come in for criticism for how it has campaigned in the seat, with attack ads on Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar being branded racist.

Both of the frontrunners have also turned their attacks on Reform, with Mr Sarwar describing Mr Farage as a “poisonous little man” and the First Minister accusing him of bringing “racism and hatred” to the South Lanarkshire race.

As campaigning enters its final days, Mr Swinney warned of the potential threat from Reform, saying: “Things remain tough for too many families who feel let down by Labour – who have given up in this campaign – and the deeply concerning rise in support for Farage.

“Be in no doubt, Nigel Farage doesn’t care about Scotland. He poses a threat to our values and must be stopped, and only the SNP can do that.

“In this by-election, the SNP is the only party investing in Scotland’s future, delivering for families and confronting Farage. On Thursday, vote SNP to stop Farage.”

Mr Swinney touted his own Government’s record, including free prescriptions, free tuition and free bus travel for the young and the elderly, as well as plans to scrap peak rail fares and mitigate the two-child benefit cap.

“On the final week of campaigning in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, it’s clear which party is on Scotland’s side,” he said.

Mr Swinney’s comments come as his party’s Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said Mr Farage was “just as dangerous to Scotland’s long-term energy and economic future as the activists who would shut down the oil and gas industry tomorrow”.

Mr Farage has long been an opponent of net zero, while his deputy Richard Tice told the PA news agency one of his party’s key policies ahead of the Holyrood elections next year would be to push for increased oil extraction.

Responding, a spokesman for Reform UK said: “The SNP’s hostile environment to oil and gas has been holding Scotland back for decades.

“From standing idly by whilst the Grangemouth refinery closed, to opposing oil and gas exploration in the North Sea, the SNP have not only failed to realise the countless jobs that could be created in the sector, but also sacrificed hundreds of jobs on the altar of their net zero obsession.”