Humza Yousaf tearfully resigns, throwing SNP’s future into disarray

Humza Yousaf tearfully announced his resignation as Scottish First Minister and SNP leader on Monday, ushering in a battle for the future of the party.

Mr Yousaf quit after it became clear over the weekend that he would lose a vote of no confidence in the Scottish Parliament, which was scheduled to be held later this week.

Kate Forbes is giving “serious consideration” to running in the contest to replace Mr Yousaf amid concerns that John Swinney, the front-runner,  is a “continuity Sturgeon” candidate.

Ms Forbes is expected to want to move the party away from social issues such as gender reforms to focus on the economy and education, while Mr Swinney was installed as the overwhelming favourite, with party grandees and several possible leadership rivals quickly lining up behind him.

Mr Yousaf’s botched move to end his coalition with the Greens has led to a humiliating fall from power.

In a statement at his Bute House official residence in Edinburgh, he admitted that he had “clearly underestimated the level of hurt and upset I caused Green colleagues” when he dumped them from his Government last Thursday.

Sources close to the First Minister admitted they had not predicted that the seven Green MSPs would support a Tory vote of no confidence, a catastrophic miscalculation that cost Mr Yousaf his job.

Although Alex Salmond’s Alba Party had offered to try to help Mr Yousaf win the vote, he said he was “not willing to trade my values and principles or do deals with whomever, simply for retaining power”.

Relations between the SNP and Alba are toxic, and senior figures around Mr Yousaf made clear they were opposed to any deal, warning that they could not be “beholden” to Mr Salmond.

Mr Yousaf said he had informed the SNP national secretary of his “intention to stand down as party leader”, triggering a leadership election, and he would continue as First Minister pending his successor being chosen.

In an emotional conclusion to his statement, Mr Yousaf said he was “sad” his tenure as First Minister was ending, barely a year after he had replaced Nicola Sturgeon.

He concluded: “I am also grateful and blessed for having the opportunity afforded to so few – to lead my country, and who could ask for a better country to lead than Scotland.”

Later on Monday, senior party sources confirmed that Mr Swinney, the former deputy first minister, would throw his hat into the ring later this week after he said he was giving “very careful consideration” to standing for his second stint as party leader.

The SNP hierarchy was hoping Mr Swinney could be crowned without a contest, as the party aimed to quickly move on from the debacle of Mr Yousaf’s resignation. Mr Yousaf has said he will remain First Minister until a successor is chosen.

Their hopes were boosted after several ministers who had been mooted as possible candidates, including Neil Gray, the Scottish Health Secretary, and Jenny Gilruth, the Education Secretary, said they would be backing him instead.

But sources close to Ms Forbes said she was seriously weighing up a second tilt at the leadership after she narrowly lost to Mr Yousaf in last year’s contest to succeed Ms Sturgeon.

Allies of Ms Forbes argued her standing would give members a choice over whether they wanted more “continuity Sturgeon” after Mr Yousaf. One said: “Kate is still very popular with members and has been vindicated on almost everything she said in the last campaign. She is giving it serious consideration.”

Mr Swinney is closely associated with Ms Sturgeon’s agenda, including tax hikes, radical environmental policies and her controversial gender policies. The 60-year-old was SNP leader between 2000 and 2004, being forced to resign after overseeing a disastrous European election result.

Ms Forbes, a devout Christian, triggered uproar in last year’s contest when she expressed opposition to gay marriage and children being born out of wedlock.

A senior SNP source said: “I am confident in opinion polls of who would be the best First Minister between Swinney and Forbes, Kate will be the runaway favourite because people want change. She will deliver competent government on jobs, the economy, health and education. She will not be sitting up until 3am worrying about gender reform.”

The SNP’s ruling national executive committee will meet later this week to decide the rules for the leadership contest, including the timetable and the number of nominations needed to enter.

Douglas Ross, the Scottish Tory leader, said he had succeeded in forcing Mr Yousaf out of office “for repeatedly failing Scotland”, and urged the First Minister’s successor to “abandon the nationalist obsession with independence”.

Mr Yousaf’s fall from power was triggered by the Greens scheduling a vote next month on whether they should remain in the Scottish Government. Party members were furious at a key climate change target being abandoned.

The First Minister repeatedly endorsed the power-sharing agreement until last Tuesday, only to perform an about-turn and scrap it less than 48 hours later. He is now leading a minority government.

The Greens accused him of “an act of political cowardice” and argued that the “weak and thoroughly hopeless way” he had acted demonstrated that “he can no longer be trusted”.

After Mr Ross announced he would table a motion of no confidence, they shocked Mr Yousaf by announcing that they would back it.

The Greens ignored SNP calls for them to rethink their stance and abstain, meaning the only way Mr Yousaf could cling on was by winning the support of Ash Regan, the Alba Party’s only MP.

If she supported Mr Yousaf, this would have tied the vote at 64 each, giving Alison Johnstone, Holyrood’s presiding officer, the casting vote. Ms Johnstone is duty bound to vote for the status quo, meaning Mr Yousaf would have just survived.

But SNP insiders warned that this would split the party, and Mr Yousaf is understood to have accepted on Sunday night that he would have to resign.

In his statement, he said his decision to end the SNP’s coalition with the Greens was right for his party and the country but he admitted “the manner that I did” was a mistake.

“In order for a minority government to be able to govern effectively and efficiently, trust, when working with the opposition, is clearly fundamental,” he said.

“And while a route through this week’s motion of no confidence was absolutely possible, I am not willing to trade my values and principles or do deals with whomever, simply for retaining power.

“Therefore, after spending the weekend reflecting on what is best for the Government and for the country that I lead, I have concluded that repairing our relationships across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm.”

Mr Yousaf, the first member of an ethnic minority background to serve as First Minister, said it had been an honour to do so, adding: “People who looked like me, were not in positions of political influence, let alone leading governments, when I was younger.”

He concluded: “Independence feels frustratingly close, but the last few miles of any marathon are always the hardest. We have run this race as a team – and I will now prepare to pass the baton to a successor, who I am absolutely certain will lead us over the finish line.”

Ms Sturgeon led tributes to him, tweeting: “I know how big a privilege being First Minister is, but also the toll it can take. I also know what a wrench it is to step aside, even when sure it is the right thing to do.

“Humza has conducted himself with grace, dignity and integrity – both as FM and in the manner of his leaving. I am and always will be proud to call him a friend.”

But Mr Ross said: “The Scottish Conservatives have delivered on our promise to be a strong opposition to Humza Yousaf and the SNP. We have forced Humza Yousaf out of office for repeatedly failing Scotland. Faced with our vote of no confidence, the SNP leader has quit rather than face a humiliating defeat.

“As he leaves office, on a personal level I wish Humza Yousaf and his family well. But we cannot forgive the damage he did to families and households across Scotland by raising taxes, letting NHS waiting lists spiral and attacking free speech.”

Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, thanked Mr Yousaf for his public service and said he would be remembered for “the dignified way in which he acted while his loved ones faced danger in Gaza”.

But he added: “For Scottish Labour, this has never been about one person – this is about 17 years of SNP failure. The fact is this is a crisis of the SNP’s making, and it appears they will yet again put party before country while Scots are being failed every day.”

Patrick Harvie, the Scottish Greens’ co-leader and one of the ministers ousted from Mr Yousaf’s Government, said: “Humza Yousaf is right to resign. His position was no longer tenable after he broke the bonds of trust with the Scottish Greens and with everyone who wanted a stable, progressive, pro-independence government.

“It is regrettable that it has ended this way. It didn’t need to. We draw no satisfaction or pleasure from this.”

Ms Regan argued that the First Minister should have accepted Alba’s offer, saying: “The Greens were willing to vote with the Tories, and bizarrely some forces in Humza Yousaf’s own party would rather see him resign than deal with a party who really want to advance independence.”