Ethnic minority MSPs make history
HUMZA YOUSAF: Re-elected from Glasgow Pollok In the 2021 Scottish parliament election, Humza Haroon Yousaf won by 18,163 votes from Glasgow Pollok.
The Scottish National Party (SNP) politician has served as cabinet secretary for justice since 2018. Yousaf was minister for external affairs and international development from 2012 until 2014, and served as minister for Europe and international development from then until 2016. He was minister for transport and the islands from 2016 until 2018.
In 2012, Yousaf became the first Scottish Asian and Muslim to be appointed as a minister in the Scottish government. He was just 25 when he was sworn in as an MSP in May 2011.
Yousaf was involved in community work, ranging from youth organisations to charity fundraising, worked for community radio for 12 years and provided food packages to homeless people and asylum seekers in Glasgow.
He worked as a parliamentary assistant for the SNP politicians Bashir Ahmad, Anne McLaughlin, Nicola Sturgeon and Alex Salmond. In 2008, while working as an aide, he took part in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP), the US state department’s premier professional exchange scheme.
ANAS SARWAR: Leader of the Scottish Labour party
Sarwar was elected leader of the Scottish Labour party in 2021. He has been an MSP for the Glasgow region since 2016, having served as an MP for Glasgow Central from 2010 to 2015.
When he was elected as an MP in the 2010 general election, he succeeded his father Mohammad Sarwar, the first-ever Muslim MP in the UK. In the Commons, he was deputy leader of the Scottish Labour party from 2011 to 2014. Sarwar was also co-chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on anti-corruption and was a member of the welfare reform bill committee.
Sarwar lost his seat to the SNP’s Alison Thewliss at the 2015 general election, and in the 2016 Scottish parliament election, he was elected as an MSP for Glasgow.
Born to Pakistani Muslim parents in Glasgow, Sarwar was educated at the independent Hutchesons’ Grammar School. He studied general dentistry at the University of Glasgow, and practiced as a dentist in Paisley until his election as an MP in 2010.
Following the resignation of Richard Leonard, Sarwar was elected leader of the Scottish Labour party earlier this year, winning 57.56 per cent of the vote.
He unsuccessfully stood against SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon in Glasgow Southside at last week’s Scottish parliament election.
FOYSOL CHOUDHURY: First Bangladeshi-origin MSP
Scottish Labour’s Choudhury has become the first ethnic minority MSP from the Lothians. He is a Bangladeshi-born British businessman and chairman of the Edinburgh and Lothian’s Regional Equality Council (ELREC). In the 2017 general election, Choudhury was selected as the Labour candidate for the Edinburgh South West constituency, but finished in third place.
Choudhary was born in Bangladesh and grew up in Edinburgh after his father moved to Scotland and later settled in Edinburgh in 1982. While he was studying at Edinburgh University, Choudhury took charge of his ailing father’s business, which he expanded. He is now an entrepreneur with an interest in catering, hospitality, finance, and real estate across the UK and in Bangladesh.
In 1991, Choudhury co-founded the Edinburgh Mela, and serves as the vice-chair of the event. In 2010, he was elected as the chairman of the Bangladesh Samity Edinburgh and organises annual celebrations for Bangladesh Independence Day.
PAM GOSAL: First Sikh woman MSP
The 53-year-old businesswoman is the first Sikh woman to be elected to the Scottish parliament, winning the West Scotland seat as a Scottish Conservative MSP. Gosal contested the 2019 general election as a Scottish Conservative candidate for East Dunbartonshire, but finished in third place. Gosal was born in Glasgow, and helped run her family business before working in local government and prior to being elected to Holyrood.
SANDESH GULHANE: Doctor turned politician
Gulhane, a doctor and a Scottish Conservative politician, has been elected as an MSP for Glasgow. He is the first male of Indian descent to be elected to the Scottish Parliament. Gulhane was reportedly prompted to enter politics following the issues of out-ofdate PPE and mental health problems during the pandemic.
Gulhane was born and educated in London and worked as a GP in Glasgow. He has been club doctor as part of the medical staff at Glasgow football club Queens Park FC since 2017.
KAUKAB STEWART: First women of Pakistani descent elected as MSP
Stewart was a teacher before she joined the SNP, and was elected as an MSP for Glasgow Kelvin last Saturday (8). She is one of the first women of colour elected as an MSP, as well as the first female of Pakistani descent to serve as an MSP. In the 1999 Scottish parliament election, she stood unsuccessfully as a SNP candidate against Donald Dewar for Glasgow Anniesland.