Scotland's leader Humza Yousaf resigned on Monday, further opening the door to the UK opposition Labour Party to regain ground in its former Scottish heartlands in a national election expected later this year. Yousaf quit as head of the pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) after a week of chaos triggered by his scrapping of a coalition agreement with Scotland's Greens.
Yousaf failed to secure enough support
He then failed to secure enough support to survive votes of no confidence against him expected later this week. “After spending the weekend reflecting on what is best for my party, for the government and for the country I lead, I’ve concluded that repairing our relationship across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm,’' he told reporters. “I have therefore informed the SNP’s national secretary of my intention to stand down as party leader.”
The debacle in Scotland adds to the fevered political climate in the broader United Kingdom, where concerns about immigration, health care and government spending have undermined support for the ruling Conservative Party.
The Conservatives and the opposition Labour Party had proposed separate no-confidence motions as they sought to weaken the SNP before a U.K.-wide parliamentary election expected to take place later this year. The SNP has been the dominant party in Scottish politics for almost two decades and currently holds 43 of the country’s 59 seats in the U.K. parliament.
On Thursday, England and Wales will hold local elections that are seen as barometer of support for the government. In an effort to save his government, Yousaf had written to all of the party leaders asking for separate meetings to discuss their concerns “in a hopefully constructive spirit.”
(With inputs from agencies)
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