Professor John Robertson OBA

First Minister John Swinney’s major speech to the STUC today is being largely ignored. BBC Scotland fully covers all of Labour Leader, Ana Sarwar’s speeches including those to the modestly-attended party conferences.

Swinney’s speech is wide ranging, optimistic and challenging on key issues such as the future of Grangemouth, Dundee University, energy, cost of living and poverty, yet the broadcasters and the so-called trusted press fail in their duty to report.

He begins:

It’s a pleasure to be here today to address the STUC Congress and particularly to be able to do that for the first time as First Minister, on International Workers Day.

I recognize the significance of this day to the trade union movement and the enormous opportunity it is for me to be with you on this occasion. It’s a pleasure to join you in the city of Dundee, a city that has faced and is facing the challenges of economic change and economic challenge, but doing so based on the strength of its people and the strength of the community that makes up the city.

and finishes:

So let me conclude my remarks by making it clear that what the Scottish Trade Union Congress will be able to rely upon is a partnership with the Scottish Government that enables us to work together on shared priorities, to advance the Fair Work Agenda, to ensure that we are focusing on creating higher value employment in the Scottish economy, that we are investing in people, that we are taking the steps to improve the standard of living and to ensure that we tackle the cost of living challenges are faced by so many of your members in Scotland today.

I think in the course of an incredibly difficult public finance environment, we have been able to find ways of working together to achieve those objectives. I give you the assurance today that my government will continue to work in that way, that we will face tough challenges in the public finances, but at the heart of our response to the public policy challenge, will be working in partnership with the STUC to ensure that we deliver for the people of Scotland, deliver the improvements in public services and clinical and economic opportunities, the improvements in the standard of living of people in Scotland – that will be at the heart of the partnership that we take forward between the Scottish Government and the STUC.

Full text at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/stuc-congress-2025-first-ministers-speech/