SNP leader John Swinney has pledged “bold action” on the cost of living, promising to freeze taxes and cap supermarket food prices should he retain power in May.

Launching the SNP’s manifesto in Glasgow today, the First Minister said that “things have got so tough it is now impacting upon our nation’s nutrition.”

He went on to tell party faithful his government would seek to cap the prices of between 20 and 50 essential items, such as bread, milk and eggs, in large supermarkets.

The proposal rests on using devolved public health powers to ensure “everyday items that make up a decent diet” are affordable and available, but it may fall foul of the Internal Market Act, setting the scene for a showdown with PM Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour government.

Turning to tax, Mr Swinney boasted that “we have a fair and progressive system, the most progressive in the United Kingdom,” but despite a deficit forecast to balloon to almost £5 billion by 2029-30, he promised “not to increase the number of bands or their rates over the lifetime of the parliament.”

Elsewhere in its 76-page prospectus, the SNP promised a £2 per journey bus fare cap, and joined Labour and Greens in supporting a standalone offence of assaulting transport workers, an announcement welcomed by RMT general secretary Eddie Dempsey as “a step in the right direction.”

The party also proposed expanding the role of firefighters, a move cautiously welcomed by FBU executive council member Colin Brown.

Warning it “cannot be done on the cheap,” he said: “The FBU and SFRS chief fire officer have been clear that any expanded role cannot come at the cost of core funding or further cuts to firefighter numbers.

“Any incoming government needs to recognise and commit to increased staffing, properly resourced services, and a clear commitment to halt station closures and ensure facilities are fit for purpose.”

An unimpressed Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie argued that “SNP promises are not worth the paper they are written on,” adding: “The SNP still hasn’t delivered on the pledges in their last manifesto — or their 2007 one for that matter.

“If you want to know what dishonest John and the SNP will really deliver, look at their record — our NHS in crisis, schools declining, crime rising, 10,000 children homeless, and roads covered in potholes.”