London. The new leader of the Scottish independence party SNP, John Swinney, was elected prime minister this Tuesday by the local Parliament to succeed Humza Yousaf.
A day after becoming leader of the SNP, Swinney, a 60-year-old veteran of Scottish politics and long-serving number two, becomes the third head of the Scottish government in just over a year.
His predecessor Humza Yousaf, 39, announced his resignation last week after ending his government coalition with environmentalists.
Yousaf abstained from Tuesday’s vote.
Swinney was elected without surprise with 64 votes in favor (out of 129 seats) in the Holyrood Parliament, in Edinburgh, where the Scottish National Party (SNP) is well ahead of the opposition parties, but does not have an absolute majority.
A few hours earlier Yousaf, who was Scotland’s first and youngest ethnic minority head of government, officially submitted his resignation in a letter to King Charles III.
“As a young Muslim, born and raised in Scotland, I could never have dreamed of one day having the privilege of leading my country,” he wrote.
The Scottish Parliament is responsible for many areas, including health and education, while foreign affairs and defense report to the government in London.
Swinney, close to former first minister Nicola Sturgeon, represents some continuity within the SNP.
The party has been undermined by the investigation into its finances, in which its former chief executive and Nicola Sturgeon’s husband, Peter Murrell, is accused of embezzlement.
Swinney was Sturgeon’s deputy first minister from 2014 to 2023 and left the role at the time of the latter’s surprise resignation.
One of the new leader’s main challenges will be to limit the rise of the Labor party in Scotland, ahead of the upcoming elections this year to renew the British Parliament.
#John #Swinney #elected #Minister #Scotland
– 2024-05-08 08:06:27
