Parties lay out first 100 days in office as election day nears

With ten days until the polls open in the Holyrood election, political parties have been laying out what their first 100 days in office would look like.

As the vote on May 7 nears, John Swinney has published plans for the SNP’s first 100 days in office, which include steps towards an independence referendum on the first sitting of parliament after a new government is formed.

However, opposition parties criticised the SNP as out of touch and argued that Swinney has presided over years of failure.

What have the parties pledged to do in their first 100 days in power?

SNP to push for second independence referendum

John Swinney wants to make swift progress in his first 100 days in office and said his party would “hit the ground running”.

That includes legislation to bring in a food price cap, establish five new walk-in GP clinics as well as a vote on measures to hold another independence referendum.

Swinney has said his government would begin its push for powers to hold another independence referendum on the first day.

Setting out plans for the first 100 days if the SNP is re-elected, the First Minister said he would publish the draft legislation for a price cap on staple goods in supermarkets.

Swinney also said the Scottish Government would formally request the immediate transfer of powers to give Holyrood control over energy policy, as well as create a £10m fund for businesses impacted by ferry disruption.

“That’s my appeal to the people of Scotland in this election – vote for the SNP emphatically and let’s get on with giving Scotland the choice”, Swinney said.

Scottish Labour makes childcare and new homes pledge

Launching his party’s women’s manifesto, the Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said the SNP have had their chance.

“John Swinney’s first 100 days were in 2007, so the idea that this is some kind of the new government is for the birds”, Sarwar said.

“This is a man who has presided over failure over the last 20 years and is a demonstration of why we need a change here in Scotland.”

Should his party take the majority, he has pledged to make childcare affordable, build more homes, and put more police on the street in his first months in office.

The Labour leader has also pledged to tackle long waits for women’s procedures, as well provide menopause clinics in every health board, to “protect women’s reproductive rights” and to increase the number of health visitors.

Sarwar pledged to implement the Equality Act “straight away”.

Labour would also declare a “waiting times emergency” in the NHS and buy up capacity in healthcare settings to alleviate pressure, before turning to restructuring of the health service.

Scottish Conservatives to prioritise tax cuts and oppose SNP

The Scottish Conservatives said they would spend their opening months in power prioritising cuts to income tax and opposing the SNP.

Leader Russell Findlay pledged to “ensure value for taxpayers” by directing public spending towards frontline services such as the NHS, schools and policing.

He said the Tories would do this by raising the point at which you start paying income tax in line with inflation, lowering income tax to 19p in the £1 for low- and middle-income households, and cutting income tax for middle earners by raising the higher rate income tax threshold.

The Scottish Conservatives previously said they would mitigate the UK-wide freeze, raising the point at which Scots pay income tax to £13,892 by 2031.

Findlay also said his party would cut benefits, after claiming that the number of people receiving Adult Disability Payment is set to increase by 50% in the next four years in a bill that costs £10bn a year.

“I would prioritise insuring value for taxpayers, backing business, bringing down taxes, and juicing the out-of-control benefits bill,” he said.

“That’s how you increase prosperity for people of Scotland.

“Don’t be fooled by the SNP arrogance.”

Scottish Greens to introduce new ‘banker tax’

The Greens have pledged to introduce a new “banker tax” on business properties worth more than a £1m.

Co-leader Ross Greer said this is to fix staffing issues in schools and the care system “crisis”.

Under the plans, a local surcharge would be added to business properties – such as Barclays and JP Morgan campuses in Glasgow and the Standard Life building in Edinburgh – through the Non-Domestic Rates system.

They highlighted figures made by Barclays in 2025, which reported pre-tax profits of £9.1bn, an increase of 13% on the previous year.

“We’re offering people a genuine opportunity to save money and tackle the climate emergency”, Greer said.

Reform to tackle migration and vows to build 15,000 new homes a year

Reform UK has said it will target the country’s housing emergency and “prioritise Scotland first” in the party’s first 100 days in office should Nigel Farage’s outfit be elected.

Thomas Kerr said the party agrees with Shelter Scotland, which said 15,000 new homes a year is what’s needed.

The charity is calling for the delivery of at least 15,693 new social homes every year from 2026 to 2031.

“People are scunnered and angered with the entire political establishment,” Kerr said.

“Enough is enough for migration. We have 9,334 people currently homeless, and 65 people are illegal immigrants. It’s not sustainable. The city is at breaking point.

“People are so angry with every politician. John Swinney has been there for almost two decades. There’s a new kid on the block, and we’re here to transform the political system.”

Lib Dems to tackle sewage dumping and introduce Clean Water Act

Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said he wants to tackle sewage dumping and bring a Clean Water Act into the new parliament.

The Act would involve tracking down and reporting every sewage dump, and replacing “outdated standards” with modern, enforceable regulations.

He also said his party wants to bring back Scotland’s bottle return scheme, which he claimed didn’t work in the first instance because the “Scottish Greens and SNP overreached”.

The Scottish Government’s deposit return scheme would have seen shoppers charged a deposit when buying drinks in cans and bottles, which would have been repaid when the empty containers were returned.

The UK Government minister blocked the scheme (DRS), leading the Scottish Government to change its plans for it in 2023.

“The Scottish Lib Dems are a party that gets things done”, Cole-Hamilton insisted. “We want to restore the country’s faith in politics”.

“We’ll do this by fixing the crisis in our NHS, driving down the cost of living, getting Scotland moving again by fixing our roads and fixing our ferries.”

The party leaders will have the chance to cross-examine each other when they go head-to-head in the final TV debate of the campaign on STV on Tuesday night.