John Swinney was today officially installed as Scottish First Minister following the resignation of Humza Yousaf.
The SNP’s new leader was elected to the role in a vote at Holyrood, with the Greens ensuring he could not be blocked.
The confirmation came hours after Yousaf he signed his letter of resignation to the king and gave a farewell speech criticizing the “intolerants.”
Swinney becomes the third incumbent in just a year and paid an emotional tribute to his wife Elizabeth, who suffers from MS. He expressed her “deep and eternal gratitude” that she was willing to make sacrifices so that he could serve Scotland.
Attention will now focus on his cabinet, with doubts over whether Kate Forbes will be handed the key job as his deputy amid tensions over her devout Christian views. The appointments will be made tomorrow after she is sworn in.
Despite rumors that he is a “Sturgeon apologist” and a “continuity” option, Mr Swinney was the only SNP leadership candidate running when nominations closed yesterday.
He managed to convince the former finance secretary, Ms Forbes, to join his team rather than challenge him, in a move his opponents regarded as a “seam”.
John Swinney will be installed as Scottish First Minister after being confirmed as the new leader of the SNP yesterday.
In a farewell speech at Holyrood this afternoon, Humza Yousaf thanked colleagues who had shown him “kindness” amid the “toxic nature of our political debate”.
Humza Yousaf officially resigned as Scottish First Minister today, paving the way for John Swinney to be installed within hours.
Swinney won the backing of 64 MPs, and his closest rival, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross, won 31. As the Greens abstained, that was enough for a simple majority.
Running for the House seat, Mr Swinney said: “I hope we can all recognize that, despite our political differences, we are all here because we want the best for Scotland, whatever our specific role may be.”
“For me, it is with all my experience, but with much more than that, with my burning ambition for a better future for this country, that I seek to become prime minister.”
He said his “fundamental belief” is that “Scottish self-government is the right way forward for Scotland”.
He committed to listening to both those who voted for pro-independence parties in 2021 and those who did not.
Mr Yousaf said in his final speech: ‘Let me thank each and every colleague across the political divide for the kindness they have shown me over the years.
‘Often, and I am guilty of this too, we lament the toxic nature of our political debate and it is true, there is an ingrained tribalism that is difficult to free ourselves from.
“However, I will remember much more fondly the kindness and generosity of my colleagues over the years.”
Swinney cleared a late hurdle yesterday when he persuaded campaigner Graeme McCormick not to press ahead with the leadership race, even though he had gained the support needed to stand.
In his victory speech in Glasgow yesterday, Mr Swinney acknowledged the extent of the infighting and crises that have hit the SNP and admitted the party has been through “a tough, difficult time”.
But he said his party has now “reunited” under his leadership and “got to work.”
Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said Swinney would simply “double down on his obsession with independence” rather than addressing Scotland’s problems.
“It is difficult to see how he can be the fresh start that Scotland needs, when he is the definitive candidate for continuity,” he said.
‘John Swinney was joined at the hip with the disgraced Nicola Sturgeon and his fingerprints are all over her numerous political failures and cover-ups.
“The solution the SNP have devised to ensure John Swinney’s coronation highlights the mess they are in.
“Is a failed former leader from two decades ago – who, as education secretary, sent Scotland plummeting in international rankings – really the best they have to offer?
Yousaf’s time as Prime Minister was spent dealing with a long list of crises, including developments in the police investigation into the SNP’s funding and finances, a series of policy U-turns, disciplinary issues, defections and bitter internal fights between factions of his party.
In his speech yesterday, Mr Swinney said the rapid leadership process can allow the SNP to “get back on the front foot”.
A Norstat poll at the weekend showed the SNP is on course to fall to just 15 seats after the general election and fall behind Labor in the next Holyrood election.
The SNP’s vote share in the Westminster election was deemed to have fallen to its lowest level since the 2014 independence referendum.
The party would hold just 15 of its 43 seats and Scottish Labor would win 28, a dramatic increase from the current two.
Swinney was the SNP’s only leader candidate after persuading former finance secretary Kate Forbes (pictured) to join his team rather than challenge him.
Yousaf’s fall from grace was triggered when he summarily abandoned the coalition deal with the Greens in Scotland.
Yousaf signed his resignation letter to the King when the transition takes effect
According to the Sunday Times poll, the SNP had the support of 29 per cent of the electorate, a drop of three points in a month, while Labour’s turnout rose two points to 34 per cent.
Under Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP became the third largest party in Westminster, winning 56 of Scotland’s 59 seats in 2015.
The Scottish Conservatives, whose vote share remained at 16 percent in the survey, would add three seats to gain nine MPs, while the Liberal Democrats, with 8 percent, would increase their performance from one to five MPs.
Scottish Labor leader Anas Sarwar said: ‘John Swinney’s coronation is entirely about the management of the SNP and not the management of our country.
“At a time when Scotland is crying out for change, the SNP is offering more of the same.”
