By Steve Bargeton, political editor

SNP LEADER John Swinney yesterday dismissed as “absolute rubbish” reports that his party’s membership has plummeted to half its claimed levels.

There were claims at the weekend that SNP membership was closer to 10,000 than its claimed 16,000, and could even be as low as 8000.

Mr Swinney said yesterday, “Our membership on Friday was 16,635, and any weekend news reports that suggest the figure is any different from that are absolute rubbish.”

Mr Swinney, who is facing a challenge for the party leadership from activist Dr Bill Wilson, also denied that he has been forced to ditch plans for SNP organisational and structural reform.

“The SNP has to go through a very extensive process of consultation and debate about any form of internal reform,” he said.

“If I want to change one word of the SNP constitution, I have to give three months’ notice of that to members of the party.

“These changes take time, and what I always said was that the agenda of reform that I would bring forward would come forward to a spring conference of the SNP next year at which all of these issues would be resolved.”