The new leader of the Scottish independence party SNP Humza Yousaf was officially elected Prime Minister of Scotland on Tuesday by the local parliament in Edinburgh. Humza Yousaf, who was elected Monday to lead the SNP in an internal vote and is due to take office on Wednesdaywill thus become the first Scottish Prime Minister with an immigrant and Muslim background, and succeeds Nicola Sturgeon, who announced his surprise resignation last month after eight years in office.
Humza Yousaf, whose paternal grandparents immigrated to Glasgow from Pakistan sixty years ago, will formally take office on Wednesday after being formally appointed to the post by royal warrant and sworn in before the Court of Session, Scotland’s supreme court . “It is a proud day for me and my family, and I hope it is also a proud day for Scotland, because it says a lot about our values”, rejoiced with emotion Humza Yousaf immediately after the vote.
Resuming the struggle for independence
He took power at a time when the fight for independence seemed to have stalled, rekindling divisions within the SNP and whetting the appetites of the Conservatives, in power in London, and the Labor opposition. Facing the deputies, he paid tribute in Parliament to Nicola Sturgeon, who had officially sent his letter of resignation to Charles III on Tuesday morning.
After his victory on Monday, Humza Yousaf, until then Minister of Health, promised to be part of “the generation that will obtain independence”, stressing that “the people” of Scotland “need independence now, more than ever “.
The independence cause, relaunched by Brexit, which the Scots massively opposed, seems to be at an impasse. The British Supreme Court recently rejected Nicola Sturgeon’s desire to organize a new referendum, after the “no” victory in 2014.
In London, Minister for Scotland Allister Jack, while congratulating Humza Yousaf, called on him to “put aside his obsession with independence to focus on his work with the British government to improve the lives of Scots “. The Scottish government has jurisdiction over many issues including education, health and justice.
According to a March 13 YouGov poll, 46% of those polled favor independence (compared to 50% last month). Including the undecided, the proportion drops to 39%.
Humza Yousaf “must make sure he leads and reinvigorates the campaign for independence, that we have a discussion about what kind of country Scotland should become,” former SNP MP leader Ian Blackford said on Tuesday. in the British Parliament, on Sky news.