Humza Yousaf

EXCLUSIVE: Yesterday Glasgow South West SNP MP Chris Stephens came up to me proudly saying: 'I've nominated Humza [Yousaf], the left-wing candidate.

The greens has been wagging us." But an SNP supporter of Ms Forbes told Express.co.uk: "She will provide a clean break with the Sturgeon era. This is despite his [main rival Finance Secretary Kate Forbes being accused of "setting fire" to her leadership bid by stating she would have voted against gay marriage.](/news/politics/1737269/snp-leadership-race-kate-forbes-gay-marriage-nicola-sturgeon) They can take their nutty policies with them including the gender recognition reform. Kate Forbes has sparked a row after saying she would have voted against gay marriage. EXCLUSIVE: Yesterday Glasgow South West SNP MP Chris Stephens came up to me proudly saying: "I've nominated Humza [Yousaf], the left-wing candidate."

Highland MSP has received 'absolutely ridiculous responses' after declaring her support for the SNP leadership candidate.

Updated: 09:29, 21 February 2023 Published: 09:27, 21 February 2023

Here's what Humza Yousaf, Kate Forbes and Ash Regan have all said on burning questions from independence to trans reform.

As Finance Secretary, Ms Forbes has overseen Scotland uprating benefits by six per cent. I know which one I prefer.” Either you believe in universal benefits, funded by progressive taxation, or you believe in means-tested benefits. She insisted it was important for the party to “reach out” to its members and beyond in order to “persuade others of [the merits of the independence](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/11/24/nicola-sturgeons-indyref2-slush-fund-should-reallocated-scottish/)” – suggesting it would be a medium-term priority, rather than an immediate focus. Mr Yousaf, although a practising Muslim, has said he supports gay marriage. [Government’s four per cent pay uplift](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2021/03/25/nicola-sturgeon-able-hand-large-pay-rise-scottish-nhs-staff/) offer to health workers in the run-up to the 2021 election. [would put women and girls in danger](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/01/26/nicola-sturgeons-transgender-reforms-wont-protect-women-says/)”, Ms Regan also suggested she could change the rules around trans prisoners after [the Isla Bryson case](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/02/10/trans-rapist-isla-bryson-has-cost-taxpayers-almost-30000-legal/). [independence](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/11/23/nicola-sturgeon-cannot-hold-scottish-independence-referendum/), gender and [the current wave of public sector strikes](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/2023/01/17/working-days-lost-strikes-hits-30-year-high/). He insisted it was time to talk about “policy” rather than “process”, adding: “Let’s get back to the basics of growing our support for independence and talking about the policies.” [the current economic headwinds](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2022/11/17/autumn-statement-benefits-rise-inflation-jeremy-hunt-11bn-taxpayer/). [Ash Regan](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2022/10/27/snp-minister-resigns-can-vote-against-nicola-sturgeons-transgender/), a backbench MSP who is seen as an outsider having quit her frontbench role to vote against [ plans to reform transgender laws](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/politics/2023/02/15/quitting-nicola-sturgeon-leaving-trans-mess-someone-else-clear/).

A new favourite for the SNP leadership has emerged following the shock resignation of Nicola Sturgeon.

Former frontrunner Kate Forbes has courted controversy with her views on same-sex marriage.

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At the launch of his campaign to become the next Scottish First Minister on Monday, Yousaf admitted he was not “wedded” to the idea as much as Nicola Sturgeon.

It becomes a political inevitability.” I’ll be laying out some of this during the contest, but I genuinely want to hear from our party membership. He added: “I think it will be obvious by the point when we have a sustained level of support for independence, at the moment it's not sustained, it fluctuates from poll to poll, what we’d be looking for is assuring that we have sustained support, majority support for independence.” He added: “That’s what our opponents want us to do, they want us to get bogged down in process after process after process and actually what we should be doing is getting back to basics and talking to people about the benefits of independence. At the launch of his campaign to become the next Scottish First Minister on Monday, Yousaf admitted he was not “wedded” to the idea as much as [independence](https://www.thenational.scot/news/scottish-independence/) referendum plan is not “out of the question”, [SNP](https://www.thenational.scot/politics/snp/) leadership contender Humza Yousaf has said.

CUMNOCK'S MSP has announced who she is backing in the race to be Scotland's next First Minister.

This matters to me deeply.— Elena Whitham MSP (@ElenaWhitham) This matters to me deeply. Ms Whitham, who represents the Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley constituency, said in her tweet: “I want to live in a fairer, equal, socially just society where everyone is able to be their authentic self.