Please see below for a comment from Brian Whittle MSP following confirmation that Humza Yousaf is the new leader of the SNP and First Minister.
Brian Whittle, Scottish Conservative MSP for South Scotland said:
“After a brutal leadership contest that saw Humza Yousaf only just scrape a win against Kate Forbes, who trashed his performance in government and called for a radical change of direction within the party, it will be interesting to see how he fairs as Nicola Sturgeon’s successor.
Sadly, it appears that instead of delivering any kind of change of direction, he’s going to double down on the same damaging agenda that Nicola Sturgeon was forcing through before she resigned.
From refusing to see sense on the proposed reforms to gender recognition to keeping the utterly inept Scottish Greens in government and driving through their shambolic deposit return scheme without any regard for the consequences, there’s no sign that, after a leadership campaign with no discernible policies of his own, Humza has any new ideas for government.
Far from coming out from under Nicola Sturgeon’s shadow, Humza is already looking like a shadow of Nicola Sturgeon.
This change of leadership could have been an opportunity to reset and consider whether Nicola Sturgeon’s ‘my way or the highway’ approach to government was the right one. Instead, it looks like Humza Yousaf’s government will just be the same big talk and poor delivery that became his predecessor’s hallmark.
Humza Yousaf’s tenure as First Minister is shaping up to be ‘Meet the new boss, same as the old boss’, and considering barely half the SNP wanted that, I don’t see that going down well with the wider public.
Regardless, I’ll keep speaking up for people across South Scotland and continue to put forward constructive ideas that can help make Scotland a better, wealthier, healthier country.”
