Kate Forbes hints that she will stand in SNP leadership contest

Kate Forbes has dropped her strongest hint yet that she will stand in the SNP leadership contest after claiming there was a “groundswell of support” for her to replace Humza Yousaf.

For the first time since Mr Yousaf announced his resignation, the former Scottish finance secretary confirmed that she was “weighing up” putting herself forward to replace him.

Although she praised John Swinney, the front-runner and Nicola Sturgeon’s former deputy, she argued that Mr Yousaf’s successor should not be crowned without a contest.

Ms Forbes told Sky News that SNP members “need to be behind the next leader” and the selection process must take account of their views – something that would not happen with a coronation.

She said she had yet to reach a decision on whether to stand, but her insistence there must be a contest was the strongest indication yet that she will do so.

Allies also pleaded with her to put her name forward, warning that the SNP needed to “get it right this time” after Mr Yousaf’s short tenure ended in his humiliating resignation.

Mr Forbes’s intervention was a blow to the Swinney camp, which had hoped to avoid a contest. Last year’s fight between Mr Yousaf and Ms Forbes turned into a political bloodbath.

Mr Swinney is the overwhelming favourite to win what would be his second stint as SNP leader, with party grandees and several possible leadership rivals quickly lining up behind him.

But the 60-year-old has faced accusations of being “yesterday’s man” after he played a prominent role in Alex Salmond’s and Ms Sturgeon’s governments. He was SNP leader between 2000 and 2004, being forced to resign after overseeing a disastrous European election result.

Candidates have until noon next Monday to enter the race and require nominations from 100 party members across 20 branches.

The SNP’s ruling national executive committee will decide the length of the process next week, depending on whether it is a contest or coronation.

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

Mr Swinney, who backed Mr Yousaf, questioned at the time whether her views made her “an appropriate individual to be SNP leader and first minister”. He contrasted his own Christian views with those of Ms Forbes, who is a Free Church of Scotland member.

Despite Mr Yousaf having the backing of the party establishment, Ms Forbes only lost by a margin of 48 per cent to 52 per cent in the second round of voting.

Speaking as MSPs returned to Holyrood for the first time since Mr Yousaf’s resignation on Monday, she said: “I am obviously still weighing up all my options. I know there is a groundswell of support for me amongst the members. That was quite clear in the last contest, which I know you followed very closely.

“Clearly I’ll be taking that into account and also trying to evaluate what is best for the country, for the party and for my family.” Asked when she would make a decision, she said it was “still early days”.

The 34-year-old said a leader was required who could “unite the party” and take it forward into this year’s general election. However, many other SNP MSPs are implacably opposed to her views on social issues.

Asked whether it would be a “stitch-up” if she was pressured not to stand and Mr Swinney was crowned, Ms Forbes said: “I think that the membership need to be behind the next leader, and the process needs to reflect that.”

Ivan McKee, a Forbes supporter and former business minister, said Mr Yousaf had “recognised himself he wasn’t the right person for the job”.

Polls indicated last year that voters far preferred Ms Forbes to Mr Yousaf, and Mr McKee urged the party to “look outside the bubble” this time by selecting the candidate who is most popular in the country.

He argued that “having that contest is important and I continue to believe that Kate Forbes is the person who can reach out to that wider electorate”.

Michelle Thomson, who was Ms Forbes’s campaign manager last year, also argued there should be a contest, saying there must be “the opportunity for a democratic expression of will by the SNP members”.

She said: “I’d love to see Kate Forbes run as she is an outstanding talent. Having got to know her so much better over the last year, she is one of the great talents of her generation.”

Mr Swinney insisted he was also still weighing up whether to stand but rejected the “yesterday’s man” jibe, saying “people have always got a contribution to make”.

Last year, he stated that his time at the top of the SNP was over as it needed “fresh thinking and fresh talent”, but he said: “Events change, don’t they? Nothing ever remains the same.

“What’s changed is that my party finds itself in a very different and more difficult situation than it found itself in 12 months ago and I would not be doing a service to the many, many, many people who have contacted me asking me to stand.”