John Swinney has accused Nigel Farage of peddling ‘racist views’ after the Reform UK leader claimed immigration had led to the ‘cultural smashing’ of Glasgow.

Mr Farage hit out after it was revealed earlier this week that almost a third of children in the city have English as ‘an additional language’.

The proportion rose from 22.5 per cent in 2019 to 29 per cent last year, when 20,717 of 71,957 pupils in the city’s schools did not speak English as their main language.

Responding to a Telegraph report of the figures, Mr Farage said: ‘This is not diversity, as the left always preach, this actually is the cultural smashing of Glasgow.

‘It’s turning it into a completely different city in every way. My question is, who voted for this? Who told anybody in Scotland this was actually happening?’

Glasgow has the most asylum seekers of any UK council area, with 3,777 being housed in flats and hotels under a Home Office deal with the Mears Group at the end of September.

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Nigel Farage has claimed immigration has led to the ‘cultural smashing’ of Scotland’s biggest city

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John Swinney claimed the Reform leader’s comments were ‘quite simply racist’

The city has also become a magnet for asylum seekers who have been granted refugee status south of the Border, as the SNP made Scotland’s housing rules more generous.

Unlike in England, Scottish councils must house all unintentionally homeless people, including single men, not just those in ‘priority need’ such as families with children.

Scottish authorities cannot refuse a homelessness application on the grounds a person lacks a ‘local connection’.

The upshot has been a surge in refugees coming to Glasgow from London, Manchester and Liverpool and the city council struggling with a £66million overspend on homelessness.

Mr Farage is due to visit Scotland on Saturday for a Reform rally in Falkirk.

Asked about his comments on pupils’ languages, Mr Swinney said: ‘I think Nigel Farage’s comments are just quite simply racist.

‘That’s what they are. There’s no other way to describe them.

‘I don’t know quite when we believed that multilingualism was something of a problem in our society.

‘It’s certainly not the view I take. I think it’s a benefit. I think it reflects the diversity of our country.

‘What these comments from Nigel Farage demonstrate is that he is a purveyor of racist views, and people should think about that long and hard before they think about voting for his party.’

Glasgow City Councillor Thomas Kerr, Reform’s Scottish campaign chair, said: ‘John Swinney’s continuous demonisation of political opponents isn’t just silly, it’s extremely dangerous.

‘In a world where we have witnessed political leaders face violence due to ridiculous language, the First Minister should know better.

‘He continues to demean the office he holds when he insults Nigel and the 22 per cent of Scots, and growing, who back Reform UK.’

Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay added: ‘Reform cannot be trusted on the Union. A vote for Reform in Scotland is only going to benefit John Swinney’s SNP and make another five years of SNP Government more likely.’