SNP independence campaign 2026: Choose Scotland launches

The SNP is to launch what First Minister John Swinney calls the biggest pro-independence campaign since the 2014 referendum, the Herald reported. The SNP independence campaign 2026, branded Choose Scotland, will begin at the party’s conference in Aberdeen this weekend, according to the newspaper.

It affects voters across Scotland, who are due to receive leaflets and an independence survey, and the UK Government, which has said it does not support a referendum. This report does not cover the Westminster race, as the sources it draws on contain no UK-wide polling.

What the SNP independence campaign 2026 involves

According to the Herald, Choose Scotland is part of a £100,000 “hearts and minds” effort and will be anchored by a new pro-independence party-political broadcast. The SNP said it will deliver an independence survey to nearly 1.5 million people. It also described Choose Scotland as its biggest ever online advertising campaign outside an election.

The campaign runs from now until Christmas. It includes a “national day of action” on St Andrews Day, when SNP activists will deliver leaflets across the country.

Mr Swinney said: “Our task is to build on that momentum, which is why, at this conference, we will be launching the Choose Scotland campaign.” He said the party would ask people to choose using energy wealth to bring down bills, to choose re-joining the EU in Scotland’s own right, and to choose a future where pensioners are not “short-changed to pay for personal care in England”.

He also claimed the SNP has “the biggest, pro-independence majority in the history of the Parliament” and that “independence is in the lead”. Those are the First Minister’s assertions. The Herald piece does not give polling to support the second claim.

Video: John Swinney discusses Choose Scotland campaign on BBC Sunday Politics (BBC Politics / YouTube)

Scottish independence referendum latest: the two governments’ positions

The Scottish Government’s published position is that the decision on holding a referendum should rest with the Scottish Parliament, elected by people living in Scotland. It points to 2011, when the UK Government of the day accepted an SNP manifesto pledge as a mandate and agreed the transfer of powers for the 2014 vote.

The UK Government takes a different view. In its response to a UK Parliament petition, the Scotland Office said the government “does not support introducing legislation for a referendum on abolishing the Scottish Parliament”. On independence, it said the Prime Minister has told the First Minister that a referendum “would only serve as a distraction to the vital work of growing the economy and helping to give families breathing space with the cost of living”.

The petition itself, created by Georgina Sparrow, asks for a vote on abolishing Holyrood. It claims the SNP and Greens won 57% of seats on 41% of votes in the recent election. That is the petitioner’s figure, not an official result. It has 17,553 signatures.

What the First Minister has promised, and what happens next

In his speech to the Scottish Parliament, Mr Swinney said the election was “a cost-of-living election” and set out independence as an EU member state as his government’s vision. He also promised a £2 national bus fare cap, an increase in the Scottish Child Payment to £40 a week for babies under one, up to £10,000 towards deposits for first-time buyers, and 150,000 apprenticeships. He also committed £4.9 billion to build thousands more homes.

Several dates now matter. The campaign runs until Christmas, with the leaflet day in between. The petition stays open until 12 December 2026. At 100,000 signatures it would be considered for a debate in Parliament, so it needs another 82,447 signatures, and currently stands at 17.6% of that threshold.

The sources do not say how the SNP will approach the next general election or what Westminster polling shows.