Tag: scottish independence

Scotland’s ultranationalists are trying to seize their moment

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Nicola Sturgeon’s departure and arrest have sent her party into disarray. Now fringe groups in the independence movement sense an opening.

The Scottish Nationalist Party is in disarray. 

Since former first minister Nicola Sturgeon abruptly left office earlier this year, she and her husband Peter Murrell have both been arrested in connection with a long-running inquiry into party finances. 

Her successor, Humza Yousaf, has been left trying to forge a clear pathway toward Scottish independence – the party’s fundamental goal. 

But he faces a big challenge. 

With a second independence vote blocked by the courts, the SNP recently decided to treat the next election as a “de facto referendum”, though the criteria for “winning” are unclear.  

Adding to the sense of turmoil, several SNP MPs are stepping down at the next election.

Yet for all the party’s problems, there is so far little sign that support for Scottish independence is falling. 

This is emboldening radical nationalist groups to try and change the game.

The most significant other nationalist party in Scotland is Alba, led by Sturgeon’s predecessor Alex Salmond. Founded in 2021, it often defines itself in opposition to the SNP – especially on trans identity issues.

Alba has so far failed to break through electorally, but with Salmond at the helm, it is attracting activists from more outlying factions of the independence movement.

One example is a relatively new activist group named Salvo, a small campaigning organisation assembled under the banner of what they call “Scottish Liberation”.

Unlike the more forward-looking SNP, Salvo’s rationale for independence is grounded in the “Claim of Right”, a document signed in 1689 whose constitutional details it says mean that “the Union of Scotland and England is built on a lie”.

The group’s central claim is that Scotland’s ancient constitution has been illegally ignored for more than three centuries, making Scotland not a member of the Union but a colony.

Independence is occasionally couched in terms of colonialism even by elected SNP figures, but Salvo goes much further than analogy. It insists Scotland is an “annexed territory” that has been the victim of “subjugation” by “the English government”.

It wants the International Court of Justice and the United Nations to declare Scotland a colony – something considered an extremely unorthodox idea by many. 

Beyond the norm

Salvo could be seen as a small hardcore activist group with grandiose plans that are found in many broad-church political movements. 

Yet it’s less marginal than it seems: one of its core members, journalist Laurie Flynn, was listed as the official founder of Alba when it was registered with the Electoral Commission.

But a Salvo spokesman told Euronews that while many Salvo members previously “saw a natural crossover” with Alba, that’s no longer the case.

“Salvo members who are also members of pro-independence parties, particularly the SNP and Alba, face exactly the same challenge when it comes to educating and influencing their own parties,” they said.

“Both SNP and Alba members have an uphill battle to persuade our parties and, especially, our elected representatives to ‘think like Scots’ politically, (not a northern version of England).”

“Salvo is part of the process of separating the movement for liberation from the control of the political parties and returning it to the People of Scotland,” they added. 

This could be seen as an attempt to radicalise the pro-independence grassroots, elected politicians, and the Scottish electorate at large.

Return to normalcy

For a sense of how wide the gap between mainstream and fringe really is, Euronews spoke to one SNP parliamentarian who takes an utterly different view of how independent Scottish statehood can be achieved.

“Becoming independent is of course something you need to do with the people of Scotland, not to them,” they said. “There is strong and growing support for more self-determination but more people still need to be convinced before statehood becomes the settled will of the Scottish people.”

Salvo and other radicals would agree that enough Scots need to be brought together behind the independence cause to make it happen. Where their theory of political action differs from mainstream thinkers is in the question of what it will take to do that.

As the SNP member put it: “Respectfully, often the radical mindset doesn’t seem to adequately consider the practical implications of transitioning to becoming an independent state.”

“This will require an agreed and orderly process with the UK Government in order to obtain domestic and international recognition, enable the creation of new Scottish state systems and the transfer of assets, safely facilitate the transfer of the responsibility of delivering all Scottish social security benefits and other systems to the Scottish Government, and importantly, provide appropriate physical and cyber security and reliability through that process of transition and thereafter.”

These are many of the same issues that the 2014 referendum campaign hinged upon, and which the SNP has often been accused of failing to clarify in the nine years since then.

“All of that would take time to undertake and establish, as would negotiating entry into international bodies like the EU and NATO,” said the official. “Unfortunately, that’s the complex practical reality.

“Therefore an agreed process, through a referendum, is the best way to bring about as little disruption to the lives of the people of Scotland as possible during that transition between a vote for independence and completing our transition to statehood.

“All of this considered is why I believe we should continue focusing on convincing more people of the case for independence with honesty and ambition, so that we reach that level of support in the country where the political pressure is overwhelming on the UK Government to facilitate another agreed referendum process like in 2014.

“And in the meantime we should work with others to obtain more powers for the Scottish Parliament, so that we can move forward as a society and build up the capacity of the Scottish Government’s infrastructure and institutions.”

As far as Alba, Salvo and other hardline groups are concerned, questions about how the transition to independence might work are ancillary to the real cause. 

One reason is many of them view the Scottish Parliament as fundamentally flawed or even an obstacle to statehood.

For now, they are focused on gathering mass support in their own right. Its members, some of whom have shared Covid-19 conspiracy theories online, appear convinced that state entities are working to stop them in their tracks.

Asked for examples or evidence, Salvo’s spokesman responded: “It would probably be counterproductive to talk about the various acts of sabotage which we are pretty certain came from the British state. It only comes across as paranoid!”



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How ‘continuity candidate’ Humza Yousaf clinched Scotland’s top job

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After a short but bitter leadership contest, Humza Yousaf was elected the new leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) on Monday and will soon take over from the formidable Nicola Sturgeon as Scotland’s first minister. FRANCE 24 takes a closer look at how Yousaf successfully won over party members to clinch the top job in Scottish politics and usher in the post-Sturgeon era, which promises to be a challenging one.

Following Sturgeon’s shock resignation on February 15, SNP members had a choice of three candidates to succeed her. With 52.1 percent of the final vote of party members, Yousaf – the outgoing health secretary – narrowly defeated his closest rival and former colleague Kate Forbes, the outgoing finance secretary, who took 47.9 percent. 

The 37-year-old Yousaf has made history by becoming the youngest Scottish first minister and the first from an ethnic minority background. He’s also only the second Muslim to lead a political party in the UK (after Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar). It’s the culmination of an almost meteoric rise for the waistcoat-clad politician, who was born in Glasgow to South Asian parents. Yousaf, whose father and grandfather emigrated from Pakistan in the 1960s, is a practicing Muslim who has spoken openly about having to face racist abuse throughout his career. He was first elected as an SNP member of the Scottish parliament (MSP) in 2011, and at 26 was the youngest-ever parliamentarian at the time. The following year, he became the first Muslim and first South Asian to be appointed to the Scottish cabinet.

Yousaf has since held some of the most high-profile and challenging posts in government – notably as justice secretary and, most recently, as health secretary – but has faced criticism over his record.

“I feel like the luckiest man in the world to be standing here, as the leader of the SNP, a party I joined almost 20 years ago and that I love so dearly,” he declared in an emotional acceptance speech. He added: “To serve my country as first minister will be the greatest privilege and honour of my life.” Perhaps in a nod to the fact that he was only elected by some 51,000 party members, he vowed to be “a first minister for all of Scotland”.

Yousaf was the party establishment’s favourite, racking up the most endorsements by far from SNP MSPs and MPs and vowing to continue the “progressive agenda” the party has espoused under Sturgeon’s leadership. Although the outgoing first minister did not endorse any of the candidates, she stressed the importance of “not throwing the baby out with the bathwater”: a clear indication of support for Yousaf. His success can, therefore, partly be explained by his status as the “continuity candidate” following Sturgeon’s resignation, although he has said he will be his “own man”. 

Opposing views on gay marriage 

Yousaf also benefited from the missteps of Forbes, his main rival during the leadership race. Her campaign got off to a disastrous start when she publicly expressed her views on gay marriage. The married 32-year-old Highlander, who had a baby last year, is a member of the socially conservative Free Church of Scotland. Forbes admitted that, had she been an MSP at the time in 2014, she would not have voted to legalise same-sex marriage in line with her faith. This revelation cost her several endorsements among SNP lawmakers and led to a considerable amount of bad press. Forbes also said that she personally opposes abortion and having children out of wedlock, views that put her at odds with the majority of Scottish public opinion. Her later claim that she would “defend to the hilt everybody’s right in a pluralistic and tolerant society to live and to love free of harassment and fear” appears to have been insufficient to repair the damage done to her leadership bid.

 

 

Mark McGeoghegan, a pollster and PhD researcher at the University of Glasgow in the strategy and tactics of secessionist movements, said that Forbes’s conservative Christian views probably doomed her chances of taking the top job. Yet he stressed that she still won a lot of support. “There clearly is a very sizeable chunk of the SNP membership who would like a bigger change from the party than they think they’re going to get with Humza Yousaf. If she (Forbes) had been, perhaps, less divisive, to put it that way, she might have done even better,” he said. Conversely, Yousaf has called his support for equal marriage “unequivocal” (although he missed the final vote in parliament back in 2014) and has insisted he will not legislate on the basis of his Muslim faith. 

Their differences on social issues did not end there. Yousaf, a married father of two, supports the controversial Gender Recognition Reform (GRR) bill, which would make it easier for people as young as 16 to change their legal gender. He has also vowed to take the UK government to court over its January decision to block the bill from becoming law. Both Forbes and third-place candidate Ash Regan oppose the bill in its current form (Regan resigned as a junior minister in protest over it) and have said they will not challenge the UK veto in the courts. 


For McGeoghegan, Yousaf’s stance on the GRR bill proved decisive. “Throughout the debates, Humza Yousaf used that dividing line quite effectively – to out-nationalist Kate Forbes, in a sense. Her explicitly saying she wouldn’t contest [the UK government’s veto] allows Humza Yousaf to then argue, ‘Look, I’m the one who is going to stand up for Scotland’s parliament, I’m the one who’s going to stand up for Scotland’s interests’.” 

At an impasse on independence

Yousaf’s triumph comes as polls show support for independence stagnating and the SNP finds itself at an impasse on the constitutional question, following the UK Supreme Court’s ruling last year that the Scottish parliament cannot hold a new independence referendum without Westminster’s consent. Asked about Yousaf’s stance on independence, on which he is seen as more cautious than either Forbes or Regan, McGeoghegan said: “He needs to take forward a clear prospectus to move the independence project forward in some form and convince the party membership to endorse it.” 

McGeoghegan added: “The difficulties that the SNP have right now are not to do with personality and they aren’t to do with the party itself. They’re to do with the structures they’re trying to break Scotland free from. The reality is that the power to hold a referendum doesn’t sit with Holyrood (the Scottish parliament), the power to declare Scottish independence doesn’t sit with Holyrood: All powers over the constitution sit at Westminster. And so there’s a limited set of things you can actually do to try to become an independent country within that structure. And a large part of it is, ultimately, political pressure: building political pressure over time on the centre to make concessions like a referendum.” 

‘Massive policy challenges’ ahead 

Despite his historic victory, Yousaf inherits a tough brief as first minister amid the ongoing cost-of-living crisis, with lingering questions about his competency. He has faced criticism for his record in office, particularly as health secretary, since hospital A&E (accident and emergency) waiting times have reached record highs on his watch. Scottish Labour health spokesperson Jackie Baillie has called him “disastrously out of his depth” and the “worst health secretary since devolution”. Even Forbes, his former colleague, tore into him during a televised debate on the campaign trail, saying, “When you were transport minister, the trains were never on time. When you were justice minister, the police were strained to breaking point. And now as health minister we’ve got record high waiting times.”

 

But McGeoghegan noted that there is enough criticism to go around.

“While Nicola Sturgeon was still the most popular politician in Scotland when she was leaving office, the Scottish public did not think that her government had performed well on education, on the economy or on the NHS. There are massive, massive policy challenges that he’s going to have to get to grips with in the next couple of months,” McGeoghegan said of Yousaf.

“He is definitely politically very vulnerable on these issues, because there is a perception that he, himself, personally has been responsible for some of this under-performance, particularly in the NHS,” he added. A recent Ipsos-Mori poll showed that 42 percent of people in Scotland have an unfavourable opinion of Yousaf and only 22 percent a favourable one. 

James Mitchell, a professor of public policy at Edinburgh University, agreed that “the SNP’s frankly poor record in government is going to have to be addressed”. “He (Yousaf) starts in a very difficult position. The public don’t trust him. The public do not have a high regard for his competence,” Mitchell said. “I do think the SNP is now very much on the defensive and with a pretty weak leader, frankly, with someone who has not enjoyed great success as a minister.”

“The opposition parties are delighted; this is the result they wanted,” he added. 

“I think Sturgeon is the best and most skilled communicator in British politics – not just Scottish politics – and she’s a brilliant debater and amazing campaigner. But she was not great in government. In many ways, Humza Yousaf is a bit like her, but without the campaigning and communication skills, which must be a worry for the SNP,” Mitchell concluded.

In his acceptance speech, Yousaf certainly seemed aware of the challenges ahead. “There will be no empty promises or easy soundbites when the issues in front of us are difficult and complex,” he said. “Because government is not easy and I won’t pretend that it is.”



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Scotland: Why did Nicola Sturgeon resign and who will replace her?

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Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced her decision to leave the nation’s top job on Wednesday, not after an election defeat or an embarrassing scandal, but at a moment that was right for her. 

Until just one day before, Sturgeon said, she was only 99% certain she would go through with it, but conceded that she could have only continued a few more months, if that. 

So why has she decided, now, to step down? After eight years in the job (and another seven as deputy first minister before that), Nicola Sturgeon owes nothing to Scottish politics, her party, or the independence movement. 

But the time had come, she told journalists at a hastily-arranged press conference in Edinburgh, to consider whether carrying on as first minister was right for her, or for the country. 

“If this was just a question of my ability, or my resilience to get through the latest period of pressure I wouldn’t be standing here today, but it’s not. This decision comes from a deeper and longer-term assessment,” she said. 

“Giving absolutely everything of yourself to this job is the only way to do it. The country deserves nothing less. But in truth that can only be done by anyone for so long. For me, it is now in danger of becoming too long.”

Sturgeon said she was never off duty, and had “virtually no privacy”, explaining that it was “very difficult” to go for a walk or meet friends for coffee. She described the “brutality” of being a politician, and how it has taken a toll on herself and the people around her. 

Former SNP MP Stephen Gethins, now a Professor of Practice at Scotland’s University of St Andrew’s, told Euronews that Nicola Sturgeon leaves behind a “very positive legacy.” 

“If you think she was first minister through some of the most tumultuous periods in British politics full stop. In the aftermath of the independence referendum, SNP membership surged. She saw support for independence increase significantly, and more than that, in the big challenging issues of the day she was one of the only UK leaders to come out of the Brexit debacle with any kind of credibility,” he said. 

Sturgeon’s handling of the COVID pandemic, Gethins said, showed “leadership during a tragedy that impacted households across Scotland and across the world.” 

At her Wednesday lunchtime speech, Nicola Sturgeon did stress that resigning was something she had thought about more seriously over the last few weeks and wasn’t a reaction to short-term political problems. 

Opponents will have raised an eyebrow at this: Sturgeon became a lightning rod for gender-critical groups, including Harry Potter author JK Rowling, as parliament debated, then overwhelmingly passed, a new law on rights for trans people in December. 

After that, a new row erupted over a trans woman who was to be put in a women’s prison — even though she had raped two women before she transitioned.

There’s also an ongoing police investigation into possible fundraising fraud at the SNP, where Sturgeon’s husband Peter Murrell is the party’s chief executive. 

Failure to deliver on improving the health service, upgrade a major road in the Highlands, or even bring in a bottle and can recycling scheme have bedevilled her administration of late. 

But it’s been her decision to turn the next UK general election into a de facto referendum on independence that has split the Scottish voting public and even members of her party who would otherwise be closely aligned with her policies. 

Sturgeon has recognised, wisely, that her personal position on the issues, and how polarising she is in Scotland where people either love her or loathe her, could be a barrier to engaging more people in the conversation about independence. 

“Polarisation in politics is not just a problem in Scotland, but across the democratic world,” said Stephen Gethins. 

“A quick glance at social media shows you the toxicity towards the first minister, even on the day of her resignation, is still there. And regardless of how people vote and the parties they back we all need to take seriously the way we engage in public discourse, even with people who don’t share our views,” he said.

Who might replace Nicola Sturgeon?

When Scotland’s previous first minister stepped down after the failed 2014 independence bid, Nicola Sturgeon was the obvious successor. 

Now that Sturgeon is stepping down the situation is different, with no clear heir to the keys of Bute House — the Scottish equivalent of Number 10 Downing Street. 

So who might lead Scotland forward towards another independence referendum? 

Deputy First Minister John Swinney was a previous SNP leader in the early 2000s, and has a huge amount of respect within the party and at the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood. However at age 58 he might be seen more of a caretaker if he became first minister, waiting for generational change to come along. 

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes is on maternity leave at the moment, and at 32 she would be the youngest-ever Scottish first minister if she landed the job. Gaelic speaker Forbes is more socially conservative than Sturgeon on issues like trans and abortion rights. 

Former journalist Angus Robertson is Scotland’s foreign minister and very much a Sturgeon ally. He speaks fluent German — his mother is German — and he’s staunchly pro-European. He previously held the role of the SNP’s leader at Westminster so has had plenty of exposure on the national political stage. While Robertson’s political opponents within the SNP have been critical of some of his economic ideas, they will grudgingly admit he’d be a thoroughly safe pick for Scotland’s top job. 

Humza Yousaf is Scotland’s health secretary, and ambitious enough to want to be first minister. He would be the first person in the position with an immigrant background — his family comes from Pakistan — and is already the first ethnic minority and Muslim cabinet secretary. However, Yousaf has weathered sustained criticism about his handling of the National Health Service in Scotland and opponents would have an endless stream of negative stories to hit him with, so he is likely to be too much of a liability to become first minister at this point. 

What about Westminster politicians?

Under the SNP’s own rules, the party leader must be a Member of the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh and not a Member of Parliament at Westminster.

So any London-based MPs would need to find a seat in Scotland and win it first before making a move to be party leader, and that rules out, for now, the new SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn — who has performed strongly at Prime Minister’s Questions since being elected.

It also rules out the party’s fiery deputy Westminster leader Mhairi Black who can always be counted on for a rousing speech in the chamber, and it rules out too MP Joanna Cherry who in many ways is the antithesis of Nicola Sturgeon but who doesn’t command much support (nor have many political friends) in either Westminster or Holyrood. 

Dark horse candidates – names to watch in the future

As for a couple of dark horse candidates: Fife MSP Jenny Gilruth, a former high school teacher, holds the transport portfolio in government. 

She certainly has the ambition and competence to be Scotland’s first minister (and is married to the ex-leader of the Scottish Labour Party, so presumably knows how to make political compromises!) so it would be a matter of whether or not she wants to throw her hat in the ring. 

Meanwhile, Europe Minister Neil Gray is much-liked by the Consular Corps in Scotland who see him as a sure pair of hands and a skilled operator.  

The timing and political machinations might not work for Gilruth or Gray right now, and they would both be wildcard outsiders to pick up a win — but in politics, you can never count out a dark horse candidate.



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Nicola Sturgeon’s quitting. Who could replace her as Scotland’s leader?

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Nicola Sturgeon’s sudden exit as Scottish first minister and leader of the pro-independence SNP stunned her allies — and leaves a wide open field of hopefuls vying to succeed her.

Sturgeon said Wednesday that she had asked the party’s top brass to “begin the process of electing a new party leader” in the coming days. The SNP is, she insisted, “awash with talented individuals” who could fill her shoes — though she declined to name any.

The departing first minister has dominated the top of the SNP and Scottish politics for almost two decades, first as deputy leader to her mentor-turned-nemesis Alex Salmond, and then as leader since 2014.

She’s largely eclipsed the rest of the SNP’s top team, and leaves no obvious successor. Indeed, recent polling for the Sunday Times found “don’t know” was the resounding favorite for next leader, on 69 percent.

Here’s a guide to the contenders and pretenders as Sturgeon prepares to depart.

Kate Forbes

The Scottish finance secretary will be in pole position — if she wants it.

Currently on maternity leave until April, Kate Forbes’ interest in the top job has been the subject of much debate since her sudden elevation to Sturgeon’s Cabinet back in 2020.

That followed the resignation of scandal-hit predecessor Derek Mackay, and saw Forbes, 32, forced to deliver the Scottish government’s budget announcement at hours’ notice. But the move cemented her status as a rising star from the SNP’s post-Sturgeon-and-Salmond generation.

In the years since, Forbes’ handling of the tricky economy brief has earned her admirers.

“Kate Forbes is the person that is most capable, she has a great grasp of her subject matter and she knows the Scottish economy. She’d come with a different set of ideas to Nicola Sturgeon,” one former senior SNP adviser said, pointing to her as a more “centrist” politician than the departing Scottish FM.

Despite this, she has denied any interest in the top role. In late 2020, Forbes gave a categorical “no” when asked by POLITICO in 2020 if she would ever want to be first minister.

A series of glowing media profiles — including one in the Sunday Times that cited a “source close to” her saying she had not ruled out standing — could encourage her to reconsider. Polling in the same newspaper also flagged Forbes’ position as the front-runner (albeit behind top contender “don’t know”) in a largely anonymous field.

And yet Forbes’ differing views to Sturgeon on a key culture wars issue — the Scottish government’s bid to ease gender recognition laws — could pose difficulties in a leadership contest.

Though Forbes — a devout Christian — never publicly voted or spoke against the Scottish government’s gender reforms, she was among a handful of SNP lawmakers to sign a letter expressing their concerns about the legislation back in 2019 and has avoided offering full-throated backing to the plans.

Angus Robertson

As one of Sturgeon’s closest allies and a nationalist veteran present during the SNP’s rise to power, Angus Robertson has long been thought of as a potential future leader.

Once the party’s chief in Westminster, Sturgeon immediately gave Robertson the constitutional affairs brief when he returned to elected office in the 2021 election to Scotland’s devolved parliament at Holyrood.

As part of that brief, the 53-year-old has become a familiar presence in Brussels and some European capitals, leading the SNP’s efforts to win favor and friends in the EU.

Some in the SNP worry he isn’t exciting enough — though he’s seen as a safe option.

One SNP MP described him as “like an SNP leader from central casting,” while another MP from the same party said they’re “not sure he’s as popular as he thinks he is.”

While Robertson is widely expected to run in the leadership election, some doubt remains.

“I’m a happy father of two extremely young children and that is what is taking up a lot of my time, effort and focus,” Robertson told POLITICO in an interview in late 2022. A close friend, speaking before Sturgeon quit, said at the time that Robertson wasn’t interested in the job.

John Swinney

If the SNP is looking for a safe pair of hands to ease the transition to its next generation, Sturgeon’s trusted number two could become an attractive option.

John Swinney, as deputy first minister, has effectively acted as Sturgeon’s fixer during her nine years in government.

Initially finance minister, Swinney has also held the difficult briefs of education and pandemic recovery during his time in Sturgeon’s government. He returned to the finance job to fill in for Forbes during her current maternity leave.

Swinney has already served as SNP leader, heading up the party for four years during a difficult period in the early 2000s.

Senior party figures worried about life after Sturgeon might be tempted to persuade him to return.

Neil Gray

Described as a decent “outside bet,” by one SNP MP, Neil Gray could become a serious contender if no front-runner emerges.

Another member of the SNP’s next generation, Gray swapped his seat in Westminster for a Holyrood one in 2021 — sparking whispers about his ambition for higher office.

Gray is seen as an assured media performer and has impressed colleagues both in Westminster and Holyrood. He currently serves as the minister for culture and Europe, after steering the Scottish government’s Ukrainian refugees program.

Other outside bets

The current environment minister and former special adviser to Sturgeon Màiri McAllan is seen as a potential future SNP leader, though — with less than two years of experience as an MSP — the current vacancy may come too early.

Sturgeon loyalist Humza Yousaf was once seen as a likely contender, but a tricky few years of running Scotland’s beleaguered NHS as health minister have dented his credentials.

Rebel MP Joanna Cherry, one of Sturgeon’s harshest SNP critics, could launch an unlikely pitch as a candidate offering to ditch the party’s contentious gender reforms. Cherry lacks support from outside the party’s fringes, however.

Not running

34-year-old Stephen Flynn‘s rapid rise to become SNP leader at the Westminster parliament was as swift as it was unwelcome for Sturgeon’s top team, who did not want their ally, the former Westminster leader Ian Blackford, to be deposed. However, as an MP and not an MSP (member of the Scottish parliament) Flynn could currently only replace Sturgeon as SNP leader — and not as Scotland’s first minister. He ruled himself out of the top job Wednesday, telling the BBC he had “no intention” of running and that “the next leader of our party, of Scotland’s government, will be a member of the SNP Holyrood group.”



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