Ash Regan

SCOTTISH Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former minister Ash Regan have announced they will stand to succeed Nicola Sturgeon as first minister.

People expect a first minister to concentrate on boosting the In the Sunday Mail, she said: “We need to bring back unity, draw a line under certain things and move past them. [SNP cannot move to the right in leadership contest, warns party chief](https://www.thenational.scot/news/23331491.snp-cannot-move-right-leadership-contest-warns-party-chief/) And I do. He said: “You’ve got to put yourself forward if you think you’re the best person for the job. [Health](https://www.thenational.scot/news/health/) Secretary Humza Yousaf and former minister Ash Regan have announced they will stand to succeed [Nicola Sturgeon](https://www.thenational.scot/politics/nicola-sturgeon/) as first minister.

The 'worst health secretary in the history of devolution' and a gender rebel who is calling for an alliance with the Alba Party are the first two candidates ...

Ms Forbes, the devout Christian who is currently on leave from her role as finance secretary, is expected to declare tomorrow. A Scottish Labour source called Mr Yousaf's choice to run, and support from prominent SNP members like Neil Gray, as "bizarre." Ms Regan, who was a complete unknown until her dramatic resignation over the SNP's gender reforms in December, is regarded as something of an outside chance. He said: "You've got to put yourself forward if you think you're the best person for the job. [The SNP are 'changing the captain on the Titanic' as Ian Murray tips the Nationalist ship to sink](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/snp-changing-captain-titanic-ian-29249604) [Scottish Labour slammed as 'opposition in only name' to SNP over GRR stance](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/scottish-labour-slammed-opposition-only-29129187) [Kate Forbes takes early lead in yet another disastrous poll for the SNP](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/kate-forbes-takes-early-lead-29248060) [SNP 'too scared' to call for Holyrood election despite Boris Johnson jibes](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/snp-too-scared-call-holyrood-29245612) [For the latest politics news, click here](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/news/politics/) Nominations for the leadership contest will close at noon on Friday and the winner of the race is due to be announced on March 27. And I do. She said SNP "need to bring back unity, draw a line under certain things and move past them", adding her belief that she is "the person to do that". They added: "The SNP in a bid to save their own careers have chosen to use their backroom mechanism to pick the least capable of the two candidates available to them." [Humza Yousaf](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/all-about/humza-yousaf) and [Ash Regan](https://www.scottishdailyexpress.co.uk/all-about/ash-regan) have become the first two candidates to officially launch their campaigns in the SNP leadership contest. And more recently he has been described as the worst health secretary in the history of devolution as the NHS has struggled with record waiting lists. This is the top job in the country, and it needs somebody who has experience."

Humza Yousaf and Ash Regan have announced bids to become the next SNP leader.

The former community safety minister quit her post in protest against the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill and has since become an outspoken critic of the legislation. People expect a First Minister to concentrate on boosting the economy, creating jobs and helping them deal with the cost-of-living crisis.” He is the current Scottish Health Secretary. She said: “Since my very first moments in the job I have believed a part of serving well would be to know almost instinctively when the time is right to make way for someone else.” “In my head and in my heart I know that time is now. The SNP leader insisted recent political challenges, such as the UK Government’s decision to halt its gender recognition reforms, had not influenced the decision.

Scottish Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former minister Ash Regan both want to replace Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader.

So there’s a very strong European connection for Angus. He said on BBC’s Newscast: ‘I have a lot of respect for Angus Robertson. Also writing in the Sunday Mail, Ms Regan said: ‘We need to bring back unity, draw a line under certain things and move past them. ‘He’s a very strong European and has lots of connections because his mother was German. But he also has a total grasp of the situation, so I think he would make a strong leader.’ Culture secretary Angus Robertson has yet to confirm if he will make a bid for the leadership – but bookies have reported him as one of the early favorites for the job.

Ash Regan is best known as a prominent SNP rebel after she resigned from her ministerial position in protest at the Scottish Government's gender reform ...

As she announces her candidacy to replace Ms Sturgeon, ditching the gender reforms and being in favour of a full focus on Scottish independence, are set to be at the top of her campaign agenda. She resigned from her ministerial role as the Bill passed in principle in Holyrood, saying her conscience would not allow her to support the plans. In November 2017, she was moved from the economy committee to the health and sport committee, where she was appointed deputy convener. She later earned a diploma in public relations at the London School of Public Relations in 2007, and a MSc in development management at the Open University. The first two years of Ms Regan’s time in the Scottish Parliament were spent on the backbenches, where she served as parliamentary liaison officer to the cabinet secretary for culture, tourism and external affairs. Ash Regan is best known as a prominent SNP rebel after she resigned from her ministerial position in protest at the Scottish Government’s gender reform plans.

A pro-independence majority at any election in Scotland should be enough to trigger negotiations to leave the UK, SNP leadership candidate Ash Regan said as ...

“I have concluded that with my children the age they are, and given I am relatively new to government, now is not the the right time for me.” “We will invite the Westminster Government to the Scottish Government to commence negotiations and a timeframe for Scotland’s withdrawal from the UK.” “If pro-independence parties – with a clear mandate for such actions in their manifestos – have more than 50% plus one of the votes cast in a Westminster or Holyrood election, this will be a clear instruction that Scotland wishes to be an independence nation.

SNP MSP Ash Regan hit the headlines at the end of last year when she quit her ministerial role in protest against Holyrood's gender reforms.

She would later join a trans prisoner protest outside of Holyrood and address the crowd. “On my first day as leader, I will call for an independence convention to be held. Regan and Finance Secretary Kate Forbes were among the signatories. In 2017, she was moved from the She replaced incumbent MSP Kenny MacAskill who stood down and won the seat, defeating the leader of Scottish Regan would later earn a diploma at the London School of Public Relations. [economy](https://www.thenational.scot/news/scottish-economy/) brief to the [Health](https://www.thenational.scot/news/health/) and Sport Committee where she held the position of deputy convener. [Labour](https://www.thenational.scot/politics/labour/) [Kezia Dugdale](https://www.thenational.scot/politics/kezia-dugdale) in the process. She said she would aim to unite the wider Yes movement, creating a "convention" of all pro-independence groups. When the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill made it to the third stage of reading in the Scottish Parliament, Regan resigned from her government role in protest and was replaced by Elena Whitham. [SNP](https://www.thenational.scot/politics/snp/) MSP Ash Regan has announced her intention to run to be the SNP's new leader following the departure of [Nicola Sturgeon](https://www.thenational.scot/politics/nicola-sturgeon/). Regan spent her first two years in Holyrood on the backbenches, appointed to the role of a parliamentary liaison officer for the Culture, Tourism, and External Affairs brief.

Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former minister and SNP rebel Ash Regan have each announced bids to succeed Nicola Sturgeon.

People expect a First Minister to concentrate on boosting the economy, creating jobs and helping them deal with the cost-of-living crisis.” Also announcing her plans in the Sunday Mail, Ms Regan said: “We need to bring back unity, draw a line under certain things and move past them. I believe I am the person to do that.

Nicola Sturgeon's plan to treat the 2024 general election as a “de facto” Scottish independence referendum should be revived, one of the candidates vying to ...

“It’s not about you, it’s about the job that you were elected to do or the job that your party asks you to do. Former Scottish health secretary Jeane Freeman called for her party to “grow up” on Sunday as she hit out at colleagues in the party engaged in “infighting” in the race. Speaking on BBC Scotland’s Sunday Show, Ms Freeman said: “The first thing I’d say is to my colleagues in the SNP, and I’d say to them: could you grow up? “We will invite the Westminster Government to the Scottish Government to commence negotiations and a timeframe for Scotland’s withdrawal from the UK.” “If pro-independence parties – with a clear mandate for such actions in their manifestos – have more than 50 per cent plus one of the votes cast in a Westminster or Holyrood election, this will be a clear instruction that Scotland wishes to be an independent nation. She said that if pro-independence parties won 50.1 per cent or more of the Scottish vote at either a Westminster or Holyrood election, it would be a “clear instruction” to begin negotiations with the UK Government on leaving the UK.

The Edinburgh MSP said she would be willing to invite Alex Salmond's Alba party to join an independence convention with the SNP if she became leader.

She said: "On my first day as leader, I will call for an independence convention to be held. “We will invite the Westminster Government to the Scottish Government to commence negotiations and a timeframe for Scotland’s withdrawal from the UK.” The former community safety minister – who resigned from her position in protest against gender recognition reforms – promised a government she leads would be based on “competency” and would seek to deliver on “the nation’s priorities”. “If pro-independence parties – with a clear mandate for such actions in their manifestos – have more than 50% plus one of the votes cast in a Westminster or Holyrood election, this will be a clear instruction that Scotland wishes to be an independence nation. [pro-independence majority](https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/politics/snp-make-uk-general-election-28564920) at a Westminster or Holyrood election should be taken as a mandate for independence and she would – if first minister – then invite the UK Government to negotiate Scotland’s departure from the union. [who has announced plans to stand for the top job](https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/snp-leadership-hopeful-ash-regan-29252294), said she would be willing to invite [Alex Salmond's Alba party](https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/politics/alex-salmond-urges-next-snp-29236493) to join an independence convention with the SNP if she became leader.