Pass Budget to thwart Musk, Swinney urges MSPs

First Minister John Swinney has warned opposition MSPs that if they fail to back his Budget it will play "right into the hands of Elon Musk and other populists".

The SNP leader also said there should be no "outside interference" in Scottish politics.

Musk, the billionaire owner of X, has made several high-profile statements on UK politics in recent days, and has previously been involved in a racism row with former first minister Humza Yousaf.

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay dismissed Swinney's claim as "preposterous", while Scottish Labour's Anas Sarwar accused the SNP of populism.

MSPs are set to vote on the government's tax and spending plans next month.

The minority SNP administration will require the help of MSPs from at least one other party to see its bill be voted into law.

In a speech in Edinburgh, Swinney said if MSPs do not back the Budget they risk "feeding the forces of anti-politics and of populism".

Answering questions from the media, he said his speech was about addressing the issues that are "relevant" in people's lives, and to provide the solutions.

"Those solutions are not always straightforward," the first minister said. "And they are certainly not as glib as populists like Elon Musk would suggest they are.

"What we've got to do is work hard, bring people together in a sense of unified purpose to make sure that we improve the lives of people in Scotland as a consequence of our actions."

He told reporters the first step would be to pass the Budget. He said doing so, and boosting confidence in the political system, could act as an "antidote" to the forces of populism.

"If the Budget doesn't pass, then I think we're playing right into the hands of Elon Musk and other populists," Swinney said.

"I think we're playing right into their hands because we're demonstrating, or the political system is demonstrating, that it can't address people's day-to-day concerns."

The SNP leader added that he did not have a "direct line" with Elon Musk and was not seeking one.

During his speech, Swinney warned against "political posturing and intransigence".

He added: "Thwarting a budget may make some politicians feel good but it will be at the expense of Scotland's NHS.

"It will be at the expense of Scotland's pensioners. It will keep more children in poverty. It will be a political wrecking ball when what Scotland needs is recovery."

Musk - who has been appointed as an efficiency tsar in Donald Trump's incoming US administration - has repeatedly attacked Sir Keir Starmer's Labour government, as well as criticising former prime minister Gordon Brown.

The X owner accused Sir Keir of failing to tackle grooming gangs when he was director of public prosecutions, between 2008 and 2013.

But the prime minister condemned those who he said were "spreading lies and misinformation" over grooming gangs.

Sir Keir also defended his record as DPP, saying he tackled the issue "head on"

The world's richest man has backed Nigel Farage's Reform party. However, over the weekend, he called for Farage to be replaced.

Musk has been asked to comment.

Russell Findlay, the Scottish Conservative leader, told BBC Scotland News that Swinney's warning about Musk was "bonkers".

While no opposition parties have backed the Budget, Findlay told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland that talk of populism was a "pretend dance".

He said: "We know and he knows and your listeners know that he is going to throw a bone to the likes of the Lib Dems, the Greens and perhaps even Labour who will back it."

The Scottish Greens, who have backed successive SNP budgets in recent years, said Swinney's "overblown" language was "demeaning".

Green MSP Ross Greer said: "Other parties have a responsibility to carefully scrutinise the SNP's draft budget and to push for inclusion of our own priorities.

"It is frankly daft and divisive for the Scottish government to claim that such an important feature of our democracy is somehow fuelling dangerous political forces."

Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said opposition parties had to try to shape the budget in a way that would "best unpick some of the damage caused by years of SNP neglect".

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar accused the SNP of being "the definition of populism" during 17 years of government.

He claimed the first minister already knows he has enough votes for his Budget, but Sarwar declined to say which parties he believed would support him.

Asked about Musk's criticism of UK Labour, Sarwar said people in influential positions had a responsibility to use their power to bring people together instead of creating division.

MSPs are due to have their say on the budget next month, with a final vote provisionally scheduled for 25 February.

The minority SNP government will need the help of parliamentarians from at least one other party to pass the proposals. If an agreement cannot be reached, there could be a snap election.

MSPs must also pass a rates resolution to ensure the tax system does not collapse.

However, either of those outcomes would be a dramatic and shocking escalation with a Holyrood election already scheduled for next year.