The Scottish National Party is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic party. The party holds 62 of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament, and holds 9 out of the 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons. It has 453 local councillors of the 1,227 available. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom and for Scotland's membership in the European Union, with a platform based on progressive social policies and civic nationalism. Founded in 1934 with the amalgamation of the National Party of Scotland and the Scottish Party, the party has had continuous parliamentary representation in Westminster since Winnie Ewing won the 1967 Hamilton by-election.
Michael Stephen Matheson is a Scottish politician who has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 1999, first representing the Central Scotland region and, since 2007, the Falkirk West constituency. Matheson previously served in the Scottish government as Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care from 2023 to 2024, Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport from 2018 to 2023, and Cabinet Secretary for Justice from 2014 to 2018.
Glasgow South West is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. As in all other seats since the 1950 abolition of multi-member university returns to the Commons, residents elect one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Scottish Labour, is the part of the UK Labour Party active in Scotland. Ideologically social democratic and unionist, it holds 22 of 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament and 37 of 57 Scottish seats in the House of Commons. It is represented by 262 of the 1,227 local councillors across Scotland. The Scottish Labour party has no separate Chief Whip at Westminster.
Islam in Scotland includes all aspects of the Islamic faith in Scotland. The first Muslim known to have been in Scotland was a medical student who studied at the University of Edinburgh from 1858 to 1859. The production of goods and Glasgow's busy port meant that many lascars were employed there. Most Muslims in Scotland are members of families that immigrated in the later decades of the 20th century. At the 2011 census, Muslims comprised 1.4 per cent of Scotland's population (76,737). In the 2022 census, this grew to 2.2% of the population (119,872).
Ian Graham Davidson is a Scottish politician who served as chair of the Scottish Affairs Select Committee from 2010 to 2015. A member of the Scottish Labour Party and Co-operative Party, he was Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow South West, formerly Glasgow Pollok, from 1992 to 2015.
Robert Joseph "Bob" Doris is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He has served as the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn since the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, having previously served as an MSP for Glasgow from 2007 to 2016.
Anas Sarwar is a Scottish Labour and Co-operative politician who has served as Leader of the Scottish Labour Party since 2021. He has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Glasgow region since 2016, having been Member of Parliament (MP) for Glasgow Central from 2010 to 2015.
Scottish Asian is a term defined within the 2011 Scottish census as including people of Bangladeshi, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani or other Asian ancestry resident in Scotland. Their parents or grandparents are normally Asian immigrants. It can also refer to people who are of dual Scottish and Asian ancestry. It combines Asian ethnic background with Scottish national identity.
Humza Haroon Yousaf is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) from March 2023 to May 2024. He served under his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon as justice secretary from 2018 to 2021 and then as health secretary from 2021 to 2023. He has been Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Pollok since 2016, having previously been a regional MSP for Glasgow from 2011 to 2016.
Lisa Cameron is a Scottish politician and former consultant clinical psychologist who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow from winning the seat at the 2015 general election until standing down at the 2024 general election. First elected for the Scottish National Party (SNP), she was re-elected for that party in 2017 and 2019, before she crossed the floor to the Scottish Conservatives in October 2023.
There was a Scottish National Party leadership election to choose the new Depute leader of the Scottish National Party at the SNP's conference on 14–15 October 2016. The SNP's Westminster Group Leader Angus Robertson MP won the election.
The 6th Scottish Parliament was elected at the 2021 Scottish Parliament election. It was opened with the Escort to the Crown of Scotland Parade and Speech from the Throne on 2 October 2021.
Anum Qaisar, previously Anum Qaisar-Javed is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Airdrie and Shotts from 2021 to 2024, when she lost the seat to Kenneth Stevenson of the Labour Party. She was also the SNP Spokesperson for Levelling Up from 2023 to 2024.
The Bute House Agreement, officially the Cooperation Agreement between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party Parliamentary Group was a power-sharing agreement between the Scottish National Party (SNP) government and the Scottish Greens which was agreed in August 2021 to support the Third Sturgeon government and then was reaffirmed to support the First Yousaf government.
Events from the year 2023 in Scotland.
The 2023 Scottish National Party leadership election took place in February and March 2023 to choose the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) to succeed Nicola Sturgeon, who announced her resignation on 15 February. Nominations closed on 24 February 2023 with three candidates: Kate Forbes, Ash Regan, and Humza Yousaf being presented to the electorate of party members. Yousaf was elected the new leader on 27 March with 48.2% of first preference votes and 52.1% of the vote after third-placed candidate Regan's second preferences were redistributed. Yousaf was elected as the First Minister of Scotland on 28 March 2023.
Humza Yousaf's term as first minister of Scotland began on 29 March 2023 when he was formally sworn into office at the Court of Session, and ended on 7 May 2024, when he resigned amid two votes of no confidence in him and his government.
A by-election took place in the United Kingdom parliamentary constituency of Rutherglen and Hamilton West on 5 October 2023, following the recall of incumbent MP Margaret Ferrier.
The Michael Matheson iPad scandal, commonly known as iPadgate, emerged as a significant controversy in Scottish politics in late 2023. Michael Matheson, then serving as Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care in the government of Humza Yousaf was revealed to have incurred nearly £11,000 in roaming charges after taking a Scottish Parliament iPad on a family holiday to Morocco. Matheson initially attempted to claim the charges as a parliamentary expense, but later admitted that the iPad had been used by his sons to stream football matches, and agreed to personally pay back the full cost of the data roaming bill. Following an investigation by the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body, Matheson resigned as Health Secretary in February 2024. Matheson was subsequently banned from Holyrood for 27 days and had his salary withdrawn for 54 days, the heaviest sanction ever awarded to an MSP.
