John Swinney ‘honoured’ to be new SNP leader
FORMER Scottish deputy first minister John Swinney said he was “deeply honoured” to have become the new leader of the SNP.
Mr Swinney reacted on social media after the party confirmed he was the only candidate to succeed Humza Yousaf, who announced one week ago that he was stepping down as SNP leader and Scottish First Minister.
Mr Swinney is now expected to go on to become Scotland’s seventh First Minister, though before he does he will need to win the backing of MSPs in a vote at Holyrood.
That ballot could take place as early as tomorrow, with Mr Swinney likely to be officially in place in the top job in Scottish politics the following day.
Commenting on social media after it was confirmed he was the only candidate, Mr Swinney wrote that he was “deeply honoured to have been elected as leader of the SNP”.
He pledged: “I will give all that I have to serve my party and my country.”
Mr Yousaf’s tenure as First Minister came to an end after he tore up the power-sharing agreement the party had enjoyed with the Scottish Greens at Holyrood, which left him facing a vote of no confidence in his leadership. That means Mr Swinney will have to lead a minority government at Holyrood, requiring support from other parties before vital legislation can proceed.
Mr Yousaf congratulated Mr Swinney as his successor as SNP leader and called on the party to heed his call for unity.
He wrote: “Congratulations to John Swinney on becoming leader of the SNP and First Minister-elect.
“John’s central message has been one of unity. As a party, we must heed his call, whatever has happened in the past should remain there.
“Let’s get behind John and his team so they can deliver for Scotland.”
It is the second time that Mr Swinney has taken on the leadership of his party, having previously held the job from 2000 to 2004.
But then he was leader of the main opposition party at Holyrood, with a Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition in charge.
Now, after holding a variety of senior posts in the Scottish Government, including finance secretary, education secretary and deputy first minister, a position he held for eight years under Nicola Sturgeon, he will get his first chance to be First Minister.
Confirmation of Mr Swinney’s appointment as party leader comes 25 years to the day after the first elections to the Scottish Parliament, with Mr Swinney one of only three MSPs to have held the same seat at Holyrood continuously since then.
While Mr Yousaf’s downfall was sparked by his decision to terminate the power-sharing deal the SNP had had with the Scottish Greens, the smaller pro-independence party urged Mr Swinney not to ditch the “progressive” agenda that had been enshrined as part of that arrangement.
Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie said the party’s seven MSPs would meet to discuss how they would vote in the ballot for First Minister.
Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross meanwhile urged Mr Swinney to “govern for all of Scotland by abandoning his relentless push for independence”.