London (Parliament Politic Magazine) – Rishi Sunak criticizes Humza Yousaf’s tenure, highlighting failures in health, court battles, and distractions from domestic issues
Rishi Sunak has stated Humza Yousaf has “very little to show” for being First Minister for nearly a year other than a “lost court case” on gender distinction laws and the resignation of his “shamed” health secretary. The Prime Minister claimed the most memorable moments in Mr. Yousaf’s short term have been Michael Matheson leaving over his £11,000 roaming charges bill and a sweeping court loss on Nicola Sturgeon’s self-ID gender laws.
He slammed Mr. Yousaf for concentrating on independence since he succeeded Nicola Sturgeon in March last year, contending it was a “distraction” from his domestic responsibilities such as schools and hospitals.
Noting in the program for next week’s Scottish Tory gathering in Aberdeen, Mr. Sunak also criticized the SNP and Labour for failing to keep the North Sea oil and gas industry.
Tens of thousands of energy workers are operated in the North East of Scotland and the Tories are expecting to make gains in the area in the upcoming general election.
Industry leaders have responded with hostility to Sir Keir Starmer’s programs to increase the North Sea windfall tax from 75 percent to 78 percent and raise it to 2029. Both the SNP and Labour have also voiced opposition to the licensing of new fields.
Douglas Ross stated“every single seat” in the North East of Scotland would be a “straight fight” between the Tories and “Humza Yousaf’s SNP”. In his agenda foreword, the Scottish Tory leader revealed to his party members: “With your help, we can make the difference between the SNP having a bad or terrible night and winning key constituencies right across the country.”
Mr. Matheson quit as Health Secretary on Feb 8, three months after disclosing he had racked up £10,935.74 phone bill while on a family holiday in Morocco. He then asserted the money from the public purse by claiming he had been conducting constituency business. He did not apologize for his efforts in his resignation letter and is suitable for £12,712 severance pay from the public purse.
In December, a senior judge ruled Mr. Sunak’s government conducted lawfully by blocking the SNP’s controversial Gender Recognition Reform Bill amid worries it undermined UK-wide protections for women.
This would have permitted Scots to change their legal gender by simply marking a statutory declaration, with no medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria, and dropping the age limit to 16.
Moreover, Mr. Sunak stated: “Humza Yousaf has been in office for nearly a year and has very little to show for it – a lost court case on the SNP’s ill-considered gender recognition plans, a shamed former health secretary and seven new prospectus papers on independence.
“All a distraction from focusing on improving the schools, hospitals, and roads he is responsible for.”
The Prime Minister also accused Labour of having no “plan to deliver for Scotland either”, warning that “Anas Sarwar and Keir Starmer will take us back to square one.” He said: “Neither Labour nor the SNP are prepared to back Scotland’s oil and gas industry – risking jobs and our energy security.”
Mr. Ross expressed the North East was Scotland’s “economic engine” but this was being undermined by “an SNP / Green government at Holyrood that is hell-bent on raising taxes”.
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“At the same time, Labour is threatening to close down the North Sea oil and gas sector if they win the next general election, despite it being such an important employer in the region,” he stated.