JOHN Swinney has responded after Andy Burnham hit back at the First Minister’s prediction he would be the last Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.
In his keynote speech at Labour conference on Tuesday, Prime Minister pointed out that Swinney’s comments came on the same day his father Roy died earlier in the month though Burnham acknowledged it was a coincidence.
Speaking in Holyrood later in the day, Swinney said: “The first thing I did when I heard that the Prime Minister’s father had died was to express my condolences to him. So that’s the first thing I did.
“And the second point is that, if the Prime Minister is determined to prove that he’s not going to be the last prime minister of the United Kingdom, maybe he should let us have a referendum and we’ll see who’s right.”
In Liverpool for Labour's annual gathering, Burnham linked the death of his father with a passionate defence of the Union.
After a pause where he appeared to fight back tears, Burnham said: "On the day my dad died, the Scottish First Minister said I would be the last Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. I quote that not to seek sympathy, nor to criticise John Swinney, I don’t think he knew the news at the time.
"And anyway, my dad Roy would have been the first to defend his right to say it. I relay it because I want you to know how it made me feel: utterly determined to prove him wrong.
"Whatever its flaws, this country gave my dad a good life."
He added: "The United Kingdom my dad represented is the one I believe in. A union of nations that gave trade unions and the cooperative movement to the world, the National Health Service, a country that stood up to fascism, a country of solidarity not separation.
"That’s the Britain my dad represented. Britain is not perfect. It can be better and we will make it so. But it still stands for something worth saving, worth fighting for."
