Nicola Sturgeon will be succeeded as SNP leader and first minister of Scotland by Humza Yousaf. Many people, including Ms. Sturgeon, thought of him as the SNP establishment’s preferred candidate.
The health secretary received more support from MSPs and MPs than any of his competitors. The Deputy First Minister and John Swinney both stated that Mr Yousaf would “finish our journey to independence.”
He is a more seasoned leader than the other two aspiring figures. He has been employed by the government since 2012, serving in roles including minister of transport and secretary of justice.
After a very competitive leadership contest, his supporters claim that he is the finest communicator and most qualified to unify the party and maintain the power-sharing agreement with the Scottish Greens.
Humza Yousaf, a personal friend of Ms. Sturgeon and the “continuity candidate,” is typically viewed as the candidate who would attempt to continue the work of the outgoing first minister.
One of three contenders has pledged to use the legal system to prevent the UK government from thwarting Ms. Sturgeon’s divisive gender recognition changes. He asserted that the party can only achieve independence by continuing to advance “progressive values.”
However, he has made it clear that he would not appear in court until a lawyer certifies that he has a good chance of succeeding.
Humza Yousaf has disavowed Ms. Sturgeon’s scheme to exploit the upcoming election as a proxy referendum. Rather, he declared that he would work to create a “consistent majority” in favour of independence because it “isn’t good enough” for surveys to indicate that 50% or 51% of people agree with it.
However, he has made an effort to appeal to the more eager proponents of independence by suggesting that a special election for the Holyrood might be held to gauge public sentiment towards leaving the UK.
Additionally, Mr. Yousaf disputed that the party officials were exerting every effort to give him the victory in the leadership contest. This was a retort to those who claimed the shortened campaign was done to increase his chances of winning.
Additionally, he has stated that he is open to hearing objections to contentious plans for a new national care service and the bottle return programme.
“Follow my lead,”
Humza Yousaf declared on BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show during the competition that he was “his own man” and would carry out his plans as such.
According to his detractors, Mr. Yousaf has “failed upwards” and has not accomplished much during his tenure in office. He was dubbed “the worst health secretary in history” by Labour’s Jackie Baillie, who also claimed he now aspires to be “the worst first minister in history.”
Kate Forbes, another SNP leadership contender, was the most critical. During a live STV discussion, she said to Mr. Yousaf, “The trains were constantly late when you were in charge of transportation. The cops were so overworked when you were in charge of justice that they were close to collapse. Additionally, our wait times are at an all-time high now that I am in charge of healthcare.
The arguments between Mr. Yousaf and Ms. Yousaf played a significant role in the election. Mr. Yousaf said that his rival’s stances on social issues including homosexual marriage, transgender rights, and abortion would force the party to “lurch to the right.”
But Humza Yousaf has also questioned why he did not cast a ballot in the 2014 referendum on gay marriage. He claimed that the reason was that he had to go to a crucial meeting about a Scot who was sentenced to death for blasphemy in Pakistan.
The first minister at the time, Alex Salmond, said on Sky News that Mr. Yousaf skipped the vote due to pressure from a Glasgow mosque. Mr. Yousef has categorically refuted this assertion…Read More
Source: The Wall Street Times