John Swinney is resetting Scotland's public services - but why has he waited 18 years?

John Swinney says there will be a massive overhaul of public services - but insists this is not a knee-jerk reaction to losing the Hamilton by-election.

It has been a hard ten days for John Swinney. Not only did his party lose a key by-election to Labour, but he has faced repeated calls to step aside as SNP leader.

He insists he is going nowhere and has now announced a massive overhaul of public services.

“Modern, accessible, flexible, responsive and seamless”. This is the First Minister’s vision for Scottish public services and it will be hard to find anyone who does not share this dream.

First Minister John Swinney spoke at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow. | Robert Perry/Press Association

Mr Swinney set out his hopes going forward in a speech at Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow on Monday. Despite the speech being 30 minutes long, there was not a lot of specific detail on what will be changing on the back of this reset.

What we do know is the Government will be placing a greater emphasis on technology in public services, particularly AI.

Let us take the NHS as an example. Mr Swinney said the Government will use technology to make it easier to manage appointments, make it simple to access test results, and give patients digital tools to lead a healthier life.

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He said: “Scotland’s public sector should have a digital doorway that matches the very best in the commercial world - that ambition will drive our actions ahead.”

Despite the lack of clear detail, he made a big deal out of this speech. Around 100 people were invited along to listen, his deputy Kate Forbes officially introduced him to the podium, and almost all of Mr Swinney’s Cabinet secretaries were in tow in a show of strength.

However, after 17 years in government, the nationalists have a stumbling block - people are struggling to believe him.

The audience in Glasgow seemed to be fans of what Mr Swinney had to say, agreeing with him that a reset was essential for the nation’s future. The problem is they also indicated they had heard it all before.

One said she was “delighted” with the contents of Mr Swinney’s speech, but questioned how all of it would be funded as her organisation had bared the brunt of funding gaps before.

Another said his speech was “music to my ears”, but was concerned about how it would all actually work in reality.

A third audience member said: “I welcome everything you’ve said today, but would echo comments made by others that the reality is feeling quite different.”

This is the key challenge the SNP Government will need to grapple with over the next 11 months if they are to convince Scottish voters to re-elect them for an unprecedented fifth time.

Despite this, Mr Swinney insists this reset of how the Government manages public services is not a panicked reaction to losing the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election.

When asked by The Scotsman after his speech if this was all just a knee-jerk reaction, he said: “No - it’s about setting out the policy direction, which will shape a number of documents the government has always got to put to Parliament.”

Mr Swinney added: “What I wanted to do today was set out the factors that have got to be addressed, which is about creating long-term sustainability in public services.”

However, the SNP’s challengers, including Scottish Labour, will always have one argument on their side here - why has this reset by the SNP not been done before now?