John Swinney forms continuity cabinet with Forbes as deputy first minister

Three nods at the Court of Session and a cabinet much like the old one. Today John Swinney was sworn in as Scotland’s first minister in Edinburgh and, to almost no one’s surprise, has chosen Kate Forbes as his deputy with the economy portfolio.

Rumours had been swirling in Holyrood that Swinney’s meeting with Forbes last week was centred on these negotiations. When Forbes granted her support, many guessed it was at the concession of making her deputy FM.  

There was no doubt Swinney and the SNP old guard wanted to avoid a second bitter leadership election in two years. Last year, Kate Forbes proved far more popular than people thought, coming behind outgoing first minister Humza Yousaf by just 5 percentage points.  

On her new role, Forbes said: “This is a moment of extraordinary privilege for me. Having previously served in cabinet, I know the duty that all ministers have to reflect the government’s priorities and the missions that drive them.”

First minister John Swinney outlined his government’s priorities and the focus of his new cabinet. He said: “Ahead of my appointment as First Minister, I committed to working collaboratively across the Parliament to address the pressing issues facing the people of Scotland.”

“With that in mind, I have selected a Cabinet team that blends experience and energy, with a strong focus on the priorities my government will pursue – eradicating child poverty, driving economic growth, meeting climate obligations and investing in our vital public services.”

“My overriding priority will be to work to eradicate child poverty in Scotland, an issue on which real progress has been made through measures such as the Scottish Child Payment. The government I lead will maximise every lever at our disposal to tackle the scourge of poverty in our country. A strong economy supports the delivery of services on which people depend.”

There are only two changes in this cabinet from Humza Yousaf’s. Shona Robison loses her role as DFM but remains in the cabinet with the finance portfolio and Màiri McAllan loses the economy portfolio but retains the Net Zero brief. 

Many critics are calling for an election and rebuking this as a continuity cabinet. Deputy Scottish Labour leader Jackie Baillie said:  “After 17 years of failure, every single institution in Scotland is now weaker and those responsible remain at the heart of government. This is a continuity cabinet that cannot be trusted to fix the chaos and instability they have created.” 

Scottish Tory MSP Meghan Gallacher brought up what she viewed as the inconsistency of Kate Forbes’s position. In last year’s leadership race, Forbes ran on the slogan “continuity won’t cut it”. But, Gallacher says, Forbes seems to have very happily joined the continuity government. It’s also worth remembering that Swinney was Sturgeon’s deputy for eight years. 

So, in what direction is Scottish politics headed? Swinney told reporters that his policy programme was “anchored in the centre-left of Scottish politics”. One could almost see Kate Forbes smarting by his side; few would put her on the centre-left, certainly not on social issues. 

Swinney has emphasised unity as an important part of his job, healing a divided party. That requires compromise. As does the fact that the SNP is now a minority government after losing its powersharing agreement with the Greens. While it may frustrate those in power, democracy is all about compromise, and it’s time Scotland rediscovered this principle.

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