Shortly after the Supreme Court ruling, moves to simplify the process of gender recognition for trans people in 2023 proved unpopular with some SNP rebels and Sturgeon, typically an unflappable media performer, struggled to defend her policy in a catastrophic TV interview.
Sturgeon resigned shortly after, saying she was “exhausted.” The long-running probe into party finances which followed her departure soon became a running sore for Yousaf.
“Poor Humza. Through no fault of his own, he’s not been off to a great start,” a former Scottish government adviser, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on the day Colin Beattie, a former SNP treasurer, was arrested just weeks into Yousaf’s leadership. It would become a common refrain, as Beattie’s arrest was followed by that of Sturgeon and then the charging of her husband, Murrell, in April.
Under Yousaf, the SNP’s polling began to nosedive in the face of a resurgent Scottish Labour Party led by Anas Sarwar. As the power-sharing agreement with the left-wing Scottish Greens — set up by Sturgeon in 2021 — continued, some in his party also felt that Yousaf’s government was taking its eye off the ball by pursuing policies, such as restricting fishing and a deposit return scheme, that turned off the middle class voters that had propelled the SNP to government back in 2007.
The Scottish government is also increasingly on the wrong side of public opinion on its management of public services — and Sarwar and his allies believe victory in the 2026 Scottish parliament election could be within their grasp.
With Yousaf now gone, a potential SNP civil war looms with the two candidates to replace him sizing up their credentials.
