Humza Yousaf vows to stay in power – as pressure builds on his government
Embattled Humza Yousaf has told Sky News he will not resign as Scotland’s first minister.
Pressure has been building on the SNP leader after he tore up the power-sharing deal with the Scottish Greens – prompting a no-confidence motion in his leadership and a threatened knife-edge vote.
First Minister Humza Yousaf insists he is getting on with the job. Pic: PA
However, Mr Yousaf, on a visit to Dundee that was arranged at short notice after he pulled out of a speech in Glasgow, insisted he was getting on with the job and accused the opposition of “playing games”.
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He said he would be writing to the leaders of all Scottish political parties to seek talks on making a minority government work.
He told Sky News’ Scotland correspondent Connor Gillies: “I intend absolutely to fight that vote of no confidence, I’ve got every intention of winning that vote of no confidence.
“And let me say to the opposition for minority government to work in the interest of the people of Scotland also requires the opposition to act in good faith.”
Mr Yousaf has been left fighting for his political survival after his former allies in the Scottish Greens vowed to vote against him in a motion of no confidence, lodged by the Tories.
The crisis was sparked after Mr Yousaf dramatically brought the power-sharing deal with the Greens to an end on Thursday.
It followed tensions over the administration’s climbdown on climate targets and the decision to pause the prescription of new puberty blockers at Scotland’s only gender clinic for young people.
The ditching of the deal, branded an act of “political cowardice” by the Greens, means the SNP will now operate as a minority administration at Holyrood.
Referring to the Greens, whose co-leaders Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater were dumped this week as junior ministers, Mr Yousaf said he had “heard their anger, their upset”.
He added: “What I will do is be writing to all the political party leaders, all the party groups represented in the Scottish parliament, including of course Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater, asking them to meet with me, to say how do we make minority government work.
“It’s in the best interests of the people of Scotland that all of us act in good faith and make it work.”
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A tight vote is expected at Holyrood next week, where 64 out of 128 MSPs are poised to oppose Mr Yousaf continuing as first minister.
The SNP have 63 MSPs at Holyrood while there is also Ash Regan, a former leadership rival to Mr Yousaf, who defected to Alex Salmond’s Alba Party last October.
Ash Regan. Pic: PA
She has written to the first minister, setting out demands in exchange for her crucial support, including progress on Scottish independence and defending “the rights of women and children”.
In the event of a tie-break, the presiding officer Alison Johnstone, who traditionally does not vote, would be expected to support the status quo.
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Meanwhile, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has also sought to tighten the screw by lodging a no-confidence motion in the entire devolved government – rather than just Mr Yousaf – which carries more far-reaching implications, including the prospect of an election.
Mr Sarwar: “It’s a matter now of when – not if – Humza Yousaf will step down as first minister.
“It would be untenable for the SNP to assume it can impose another unelected first minister on Scotland.”
Both the Tories and Liberal Democrats in Scotland have said they will support the Labour-led motion.
However, the move is unlikely to secure enough support with Alba coming out against it and accusing Mr Sarwar of “grandstanding”.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission and crypto exchange Gemini have asked to pause the regulator’s suit over the exchange’s Gemini Earn program, saying they want to discuss a potential resolution.
In an April 1 letter to New York federal court judge Edgardo Ramos, lawyers representing the SEC and Genesis requested a 60-day hold on the case and that all deadlines be pulled “to allow the parties to explore a potential resolution.”
“In this case, the parties submit that it is in each of their interests to stay this matter while they consider a potential resolution and agree that no party or non-party would be prejudiced by a stay,” the letter states.
The lawyers added that a stay was in the court’s interest as “a resolution would conserve judicial resources” and proposed that a joint status report be submitted within 60 days after the entry of the stay.
The SEC sued Gemini and crypto lending firm Genesis Global Capital in January 2023, alleging they offered unregistered securities through the Gemini Earn program.
In March 2024, Genesis agreed to pay $21 million to settle charges related to the lending program, but the enforcement case against Gemini remains outstanding.
Letter from SEC and Genesis Global requesting extension of stay. Source: CourtListener
The letter did not specify what a possible resolution would entail, but the SEC has dropped several lawsuits it launched against crypto companies under the Biden administration, including against Coinbase, Ripple and Kraken.
Related: Will new US SEC rules bring crypto companies onshore?
In February, Gemini said the SEC closed a separate investigation into the firm as the regulator winds back its crypto enforcement under President Donald Trump.
“The SEC cost us tens of millions of dollars in legal bills alone and hundreds of millions in lost productivity, creativity, and innovation. Of course, Gemini is not alone,” Gemini co-founder Cameron Winklevoss said at the time.
OpenSea, Crypto.com and Uniswap, among others, have also recently reported that the SEC had closed similar probes into their companies that were investigating alleged breaches of securities laws.
Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP may drop 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29
Two Republicans who received a combined $1.5 million from the crypto-backed political action committee (PAC) Fairshake will enter the US House after winning special elections in Florida.
Republican Jimmy Patronis won the vacant seat in Florida’s 1st Congressional District to replace Matt Gaetz, taking 57% of the vote to defeat Democrat Gay Valimont, according to AP News data.
Randy Fine also took Florida’s 6th Congressional District with 56.7% of the vote to beat his Democratic rival, public school teacher Josh Weil, and fill a seat left vacant by Mike Waltz, who took a job as White House national security adviser.
Florida’s 1st and 6th Congressional Districts — located in Florida’s western panhandle and along the state’s northeast coast — have been controlled by Republicans for roughly 30 years, but their lead has narrowed in recent years.
Fairshake, a PAC backed by crypto industry giants including Coinbase, Ripple and Andreessen Horowitz, gave Fine around $1.16 million in advertising spending and funneled $347,000 to Patronis to support his campaign.
Both Republicans have expressed support for the crypto industry, with Fine stating in a Jan. 14 X post that “Floridians want crypto innovation!”
Source: Randy Fine
Fairshake and its affiliates poured around $170 million into the 2024 US presidential and congressional elections to back candidates who committed to supporting the crypto industry.
The wins by Patronis and Fine increased Republican representation in the House to 220 seats, with the Democrats holding 213 seats.
There are two vacant seats to be filled after Texas and Arizona Democrats Sylvester Turner and Raúl Grijalva died on March 5 and March 13, respectively.
Florida can expect to see a crypto-friendly regulatory environment
The victories for Patronis and Fine likely mean that crypto legislation will continue to see support in the US capital.
The Republican Party would have maintained its House majority even if it lost both seats in Florida, but it would have made it more difficult for some of the recently introduced Republican-backed crypto bills to pass through the House and Senate.
Related: Florida bill proposes strict rules against online gambling
At the Digital Assets Summit on March 18, Democratic Congressman Ro Khanna said he believes Congress “should be able to get” both a stablecoin and crypto market structure bill done this year.
Bills that could eventually make their way to the House include the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act, which passed the Senate Banking Committee in an 18-6 vote on March 13.
Senator Cynthia Lummis also reintroduced a Bitcoin reserve bill about a week after the Trump administration announced the establishment of a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve on March 6, with the legislation referred to the Senate Banking Committee on March 11.
Magazine: Trump’s crypto ventures raise conflict of interest, insider trading questions
Several British trade associations have asked Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office to appoint a special envoy dedicated to crypto and for a dedicated action plan for digital assets and blockchain technology.
In a March 31 letter, the coalition of six UK digital economy trade bodies urged Starmer’s special adviser on business and investment, Varun Chandra, for a “greater strategic focus and alignment to deliver investment, growth and jobs” for the crypto industry.
The group, which consisted of the UK Cryptoasset Business Council, Global Digital Finance, The Payments Association, Digital Currencies Governance Group, the Crypto Council for Innovation and techUK, noted the US policy shift on crypto under President Donald Trump and his appointment of a crypto czar.
Britain’s commitment to an economic trade deal focused on technological cooperation with the US “presents a significant opportunity to mirror the United States’ ambition in fostering leadership in blockchain, digital assets, and other emerging financial technologies,” the letter stated.
The group recommended that the UK appoint a blockchain special envoy, similar to the US, to coordinate policy, foster innovation, and position the country competitively in global markets.
The trade bodies also called for the development of a dedicated government action plan for crypto and blockchain technology, including a concierge service to attract high-potential firms.
They added that the government should acknowledge and leverage the commonalities between blockchain, quantum computing and artificial intelligence technologies, including potential applications for government services.
Another recommendation was to create a high-level industry-government-regulator engagement forum to ensure informed decision-making and cross-sector collaboration.
The UK crypto and tech associations lobbying the government for a policy shift. Source: LinkedIn
“With deep pools of talent, access to capital, world-class academic institutions, and sophisticated regulators, the UK provides an environment where digital assets and blockchain innovation can thrive,” they stated.
Related: UK should tax crypto buyers to boost stock investing, economy, says banker
The coalition argues that crypto and blockchain technology could boost the UK economy by 57 billion British pounds ($73.6 billion) over the next decade, with the sector potentially increasing global gross domestic product by 1.39 trillion pounds ($1.8 trillion) by 2030.
Tom Griffiths, the co-founder and managing partner of crypto compliance advisory firm BitCompli, said in response to the letter on LinkedIn that the Financial Conduct Authority “has a lot of talent and a good sight of future plans, but the UK is definitely losing pace with Dubai, Singapore, and other EU jurisdictions.”
“Now is the time for the FCA to act, or the UK will lose out on this huge opportunity, which is digital assets and all the benefits this sector can bring, not only now but over the next 20 years,” he added.
Magazine: Bitcoin ATH sooner than expected? XRP may drop 40%, and more: Hodler’s Digest, March 23 – 29
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