FMQs Roundup: Thursday May 08 2025 #FMQs
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Hello and welcome to the Scotsman's Politics Show for this Thursday.
00:05We're here to unwrap and unpick First Minister's questions for another week.
00:09And I'm joined by our political correspondent, Rachel Amory,
00:12who's coming to you live from the halls of Holyrood.
00:15Rachel, slightly different FMQs today given the occasion.
00:20We know it's the 80-year anniversary of VE Day
00:23with events happening across the country.
00:25And John Swinney and other party leaders paid their tributes as well.
00:31Yeah, that's how First Minister's questions started off today.
00:34And it was across the entire parliament that there were two-minute silence was observed.
00:38So I was actually down here in the garden lobby
00:40and a notice came over the tanner to say that the silence had started.
00:44And everyone did observe that throughout the whole building,
00:47which was quite something to sort of witness as well.
00:51But yeah, each party leader going over their own tributes there.
00:54Quite interestingly, John Swinney made a reference to his uncle
00:58who died in Italy 35 days before the E Day.
01:02We've actually got a story on that written by John Swinney himself
01:06on the Scotsman's website.
01:07So if any of our viewers want to take a bit more of a look into that,
01:10then I'm sure they can find that on our website there.
01:12So that's how today started off,
01:14before we got into the litty-gritty of FMQs this week.
01:16And, Rachel, it was programmed for government back on Tuesday,
01:21almost seems a lifetime ago, but the significance of that will rumble on.
01:26First Minister John Swinney was accused of plagiarism at the time
01:30around some of the plans that they unveiled around GP appointments, et cetera.
01:35The rabbit in the hat was the peak railfares being scrapped from September.
01:42But the PFG formed the basis of the questions today.
01:45Can you just run us through what the attack lines were?
01:48Yeah, that's what the main questioning was,
01:50particularly from the Conservatives and the Labour Party.
01:52The Conservatives are focusing on the promise to end the 8am rush
01:56for GP appointments.
01:57Now, the SNP says they're going to do that by creating 100,000 more appointments.
02:02Now, speaking to the SNP and the government officials
02:05sort of behind the scenes here, they are quite happy with this.
02:08They are quite confident that they can reach this.
02:10And then when it comes to the election next year,
02:11it will make them look good.
02:13It'll be a good election winner for them.
02:15However, there have been criticisms in the days
02:16since the programme for government, particularly from the BMA,
02:20who say that there's just not the capacity to offer these appointments.
02:24And the Conservatives are also arguing that what really needs to happen
02:27is there just needs to be more GPs hired to fill up these spaces
02:31as opposed to trying to come up with all these different options there.
02:34So differing opinions as to whether it will work
02:36or whether it won't work.
02:38But in saying that, ending the 8am rush is something
02:40that pretty much everyone can agree on.
02:42Everyone knows it doesn't work well for them.
02:44And so if the SNP are able to achieve that,
02:49it'll make them look good for the next election.
02:50It will be helping them on their way to potentially winning
02:52the election next year.
02:54So, Rachel, there was no hiding the fact
02:57it was 12 months out from the Scottish election on Wednesday.
03:01I think every party leader did a set play
03:03where they gave a speech, took questions, et cetera.
03:07Obviously, John Swinney started using the word independence again
03:11for the first time, it seems, in some time.
03:14Said he felt the party didn't have the right to discuss it last year
03:18but felt that they were back in a position to talk about
03:21what the future of Scotland would look like from an SNP perspective.
03:26I want to get your thoughts, though, on that election war footing,
03:31how it impacted FMQs today and what you think we're going to see
03:35over the coming days and weeks.
03:37I know for quite a while now, it has felt very much
03:39like a campaigning parliament rather than the sort of day-to-day work
03:43that we normally see here in Hollywood
03:45because everyone does have both eyes firmly fixed
03:48on this Scottish Parliament election,
03:49which is now less than a year to go.
03:52This time next year, we will hopefully know the results
03:54as long as there's no big hiccups on the night.
03:57Now, earlier this week, there was a poll,
03:59quite a bombshell poll, to be honest.
04:01It did predict that the SNP will be the largest party in Scotland,
04:05albeit on slightly less numbers than they are now,
04:08so they will fall short of the majority.
04:10But quite interestingly, it suggests that Reform UK
04:12will become the second biggest party,
04:15leapfrogging the Labour Party and the Conservatives
04:17to become the official opposition in Hollywood.
04:20And so I think because of that,
04:21because of the programme for government earlier in the week,
04:24all of the parties are really trying to get some election messaging
04:26into their first minister's questioning today.
04:30And you can see some of that back and forth
04:32about trying to convince voters to back them.
04:35What was quite interesting, though,
04:36is that you could see John Swinney
04:37sort of trying to put a little bit of an attack
04:39onto the Labour Party and onto the Conservatives.
04:41So, for example, saying that the Labour Party
04:44were whinging about certain issues,
04:46particularly around homelessness and housing,
04:48because they hadn't backed the SNP budget.
04:51And right at the very, very end of the first minister's questions as well,
04:55he had branded the Conservatives
04:56as a disgusting organisation as well,
04:58which is quite strong language to be using.
05:01I'm actually quite surprised he wasn't there
05:02from that defence deciding officer for that comment.
05:05But yes, they were very much starting to see
05:06the election campaigning ramping up and up and up,
05:09and we're just going to continue to see that over the next year.
05:11And I think first minister's questions,
05:13whether for good or for bad,
05:14are going to be dominated by that for the next 12 months.
05:18And correct me if I'm wrong,
05:19I think John Swinney did later sort of apologise
05:21for his use of language after wheeling that out as well
05:25without being scolded by the presiding officer.
05:28You talk about that poll, we've got full details.
05:31There's a story on the Scotsman's site.
05:33It is one that will concern Scottish Labour.
05:36However, the one plus for them is they've got 12 months
05:40to fix it effectively and turn the polls around.
05:43But they will be a fascinating watch over coming weeks
05:46and months of how they tackle this slippage in the polls
05:50that's virtually happened ever since Labour won the election
05:54last year and came into power at Westminster.
05:58Rachel, thanks for bringing us up to speed
06:00on everything from the first minister's questions today.
06:04You can read all our latest political coverage at the site.
06:07There's a politics tab in the navigation bar
06:09that will bring you all the latest.
06:11And to read and see the images
06:14from VE Day commemorations across the country,
06:19please pick up a copy of Tomorrow's Scotsman.
06:21Rachel, thanks to you.
06:22Thanks, everyone else, for joining us.
06:23Thanks, everyone.
06:28Thank you very much.