The First Minister gave two major speeches at the start of this week. In the first, delivered to an audience at the Imaging Centre of Excellence at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, he pledged a “national project of renewal” for Scotland’s public services, arguing that the status quo “across almost every field of endeavour” no longer serves the public properly. I doubt that many of us would disagree.

The second, delivered to the Scotland 2050 conference, argued that only with independence could Scotland fix that “broken system” which “delivers for a very few at the very top, while living standards stagnate and real wages are squeezed.” I imagine that’s a view that is rather more contentious.

Mr Swinney’s two speeches mark a significant shift in the SNP’s political strategy after their defeat in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election at the start of this month. When he and Kate Forbes, his Deputy First Minister and Economy Secretary, took over from Humza Yousaf in May last year, their priority was righting the ship. The SNP had been losing support ever since Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation, and under Mr Yousaf’s leadership had been overtaken by Scottish Labour, ultimately leading to their heavy defeat in the general election last July.........

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