Former First Minister Humza Yousaf is to stand down as an MSP at the 2026 Holyrood election. (Image: Getty)
Former First Minister Humza Yousaf will stand down as an MSP at the 2026 Holyrood election.
The ex- leader has been a backbencher since resigning as first minister in April.
Taking to X, formerly Twitter, he said: “Come 2026, I will have served 15 years as an MSP.
“The time will be right for me to move on.”
In a letter to his successor, John Swinney, Mr Yousaf said the next election would be the “right time” to move on from parliament.
He wrote: “I struggle to find the words to appropriately convey what an honour it is to sit in our nation’s parliament as the elected representative for Glasgow Pollok.”
Mr Yousaf added: “The next Scottish Parliament elections in 2026 will be the right time for me to move on, to provide an opportunity for the next generation of MSPs to step forward, and to explore where I can best make a contribution in the future, in helping to tackle some of the most pressing challenges our world faces.”
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Mr Yousaf insisted his decisions to end the ’s powersharing deal with the Scottish Greens, a move which led to him resigning as first minister, was the correct decision.
In an interview this morning, he said: “My successor is no longer encumbered with that deal, (he) can make decisions in policy that he wants to take forward in our country’s interest without having to negotiate and compromise with the Greens.
“They can do that on an issue by issue basis, which I think is the best way to do it.”
Mr Yousaf also discussed his online feud with where he accused the US billionaire of amplifying “disinformation”.
Warning of Mr Musk’s political influence, Mr Yousaf said: “He (Musk) is apparently sitting in the interviews for chief of staff, for secretaries of state and living in Mar-a-Lago.
“And if he is trying to emulate that influence in the next UK general election, that should – as I say – ring alarm bells right up and down the country.”