John Swinney insists he won't resign if SNP fails to win majority at Holyrood election

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John Swinney has denied he will be forced to resign if the SNP fails to win a majority at next year's Holyrood election. ‌

The First Minister yesterday faced down rebels at his party's conference in Aberdeen to secure backing for his preferred strategy to secure another referendum on independence. ‌

Swinney has insisted the SNP must win a majority of MSPs on its own in order to achieve a mandate for an IndyRef2. ‌

Keith Brown, the party's depute leader, later told reporters this meant Swinney was "staking his premiership on winning independence".

But Swinney rejected such a notion today. “It would be kind of funny if I won the election then resigned,” he said. "To make progress on the independence question, we’ve got to get 65 seats at the Scottish Parliamen