JOHN Swinney has said that Elon Musk’s politics must be separated from his businesses after the world’s richest man gave several “Nazi salutes” on stage at Donald Trump’s inauguration.
Musk, who runs firms which the Scottish Government uses such as Tesla and Starlink, has also supported neo-Nazis in Germany and is reportedly funding far-right agitator Tommy Robinson – who is in jail after repeatedly spreading lies about a Syrian asylum seeker – through his legal battles in the UK.
The First Minister was asked if, in that context, he was happy for the Scottish Government to continue using Musk’s firms.
He said: “I think we've got to create a distinction here between economic activities that we take forward which are the subject of due diligence – because we have to operate within the law and we cannot take decisions that cannot be legally supported.
“We've got to operate within the framework of the law, which will then govern many of any decisions that we take in relation to Starlink or Tesla.
“We've got to separate that from whatever we think about some of the conduct, stances, attitudes, and points put forward by Elon Musk.”
On the topic of the far-right, the SNP leader went on: “You know that I am wholly and unreservedly concerned about anything that fuels the growth and the development of the far-right. Indeed, I've spent my political lifetime resisting the pressure of the far-right and I've commented extensively on these questions on previous occasions.
“So, you can be assured that we will take due diligence on any economic and business development aspects because we have to act within the law, no matter who it is we're dealing with.
“But be assured also that we won't have any truck with anyone supporting or encouraging any far-right thinking within Scotland.”
Asked if that was what Musk was doing with his salutes on stage, Swinney said: “It certainly looked like that to me.”
"I just want to say thank you for making it happen. Thank you."
On his social media platform X (formerly Twitter), Musk later suggested that to call it a “Heil Hitler” salute, as Israeli media such as the Jerusalem Post had done, was a “dirty trick”.
“The ‘everyone is Hitler’ attack is sooo tired,” Musk added.
The world’s richest man, he will be leading the “Department of Government Efficiency” for the Trump administration, where he is expected to oversee sweeping public sector cuts.
Elsewhere on Wednesday, Swinney was asked about the prospect of having to deal with the new US president.
Following his inauguration, Trump immediately signed dozens of executive orders, including declaring a national emergency at the southern US border due to the number of migrants coming across.
Turning to immigration himself during a speech at JP Morgan in Glasgow, Swinney called for a bespoke system for Scotland, including a graduate visa that allows those who complete courses at Scottish universities to remain in the country.
Asked afterwards about the difference in approaches, Swinney said: “President Trump has been elected, he will take decisions. His decisions will potentially have an effect on issues that matter to us.
“I’ve made no secret of the fact that I am alert to the danger of [trade] tariffs and the danger that could do to the Scotch whisky industry, which is a significant generator of wealth and income and opportunity within Scotland.
“So there is absolutely no alternative but for me to engage with the US administration led by President Trump, should those circumstances arise, and that’s exactly what I’ll do.”
Trump is expected to travel to Scotland this year for the opening of a new course at the golf club he owns in Aberdeenshire.
Meanwhile, Swinney was also pressed on his Health Secretary Neil Gray, who was forced to apologise for a second time over meetings he had at football matches, and the fate of the national care service (NCS) – which will be the subject of a parliamentary statement on Thursday.
Gray had previously said minutes had been taken for “all” meetings he attended at football matches, which were part of an earlier controversy around his use of Government-owned cars to travel to games, but on Tuesday he conceded this had not been the case.
Asked if he has confidence in Gray, the First Minister said: “Yes.”
He said the Health Secretary had said “one word too many … which was the word ‘all’”.
