John Swinney: 'I know how people feel' after police probe

The First Minister, campaigning in Glasgow, said he is all about rebuilding trust.

Matheson received the longest suspension, 27 days, issued by the Scottish Parliament and will lose 54 days MSP pay.

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Peter Murrell, the SNP’s former chief executive, has been charged with embezzlement in the ongoing Operation Branchform investigation.

Speaking exclusively to the Glasgow Times, Swinney said restoring trust is why he is now party leader.

He was visiting Merry-Go -Round, a social enterprise children's hub in Pollokshields, with Stewart McDonald, the SNP Glasgow South candidate.

Asked why people should vote SNP after trust has been lost, Swinney, said: “That’s why I’m here. That’s what I’m about. I’m about building up that trust and confidence in the SNP.

“I know how people feel. I hear it from people, of course I do.

“But I think people in Scotland generally trust me to do the right thing by Scotland.

“They’ve seen me in action for many, many years and my party right across the spread of opinion has said to me we want you to come in to lead our party and to demonstrate what you’re about to the people of Scotland. So that’s how we do it.”

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Having been at the heart of the Scottish Government since 2007, as Finance Secretary, Education Secretary and Deputy First Minister he said in recent years relations with the UK Government had been “dire”.

He said he wants a reset and a relationship based on “mutual trust” with Westminster.

Swinney said: “I’ve always taken a cooperative approach with UK ministers.

“Over the years I’ve had a lot of experience with it.

“Some years it’s been good, other years it’s been bad and I choose that word deliberately because for a number of years it's been dire.

“It wasn’t always dire. We had good relationships with ministers in the Brown government and the Cameron government, even in the Theresa May government.

“After Boris Johnson came in which was when it went down the slope.”

He said he wants to return to a working relationship with Downing Street and Whitehall.

Swinney added: “Now, there’s some things we can achieve with the UK ministers but we need to have a relationship based on mutual respect.

“I will unreservedly commit to lead a government that will engage in mutual respect with the UK Government.

“Whoever it is, I’ll work in an environment of mutual respect but I’ll expect that to be reciprocated.”

The General Election is expected to be the closest for some years, in Glasgow with the SNP having won all the city seats at two of the last three UK wide polls.

This time Labour is looking to win all six.

Asked what the SNP MPs had achieved over the last nine years Swinney said they have stood up for Glasgow.

He said: “I think what they have done is they’ve made the case for Scotland to be able to take our own decisions. To pursue an agenda that is in line with the priorities of the people of the city of Glasgow.

“They've railed against austerity from the Tory government. They’ve railed against Brexit, which has done so much damage to this city.

“They've railed against the cost-of-living crisis and they’ve fought big and bold campaigns for example on the two-child cap, which is a heinous element of the benefit system.

“Alison Thewliss has been in the vanguard of that campaign and it’s been an illustration of the values of the SNP and what SNP MPs are prepared to argue for.”

With the city council dealing with huge cuts and planning to axe hundreds of teachers, the SNP leader said that was directly related to decisions taken by UK ministers at Westminster.

He said: “So much of the finance that’s available to services like the National Health Service or Schools is determined by the choices that are made in Westminster.

“The Labour shadow health secretary, Wes Streeting, said that the challenges of the health service in Wales and Scotland and Northern Ireland are determined by how much money is invested in the health service in England. And he’s right about that.”

He said that had to change for public services in Scotland to be protected.

He added: “So if there’s austerity applied to health service budgets or schools budgets in England, we will feel that in Scotland.

“That’s got to be reversed that is the absolute priority of this election.

“The Tories need to be removed, and any incoming Labour government has got to bring forward an emergency budget to end austerity and to invest in the NHS and in our schools.”