SNP leadership race: Five key challenges Scotland’s new first minister will face as Sturgeon’s successor set to be announced

Published

2 years ago

March 27, 2023

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Scotland’s new first minister is set to be announced today.

Nicola Sturgeon’s shock resignation sparked an explosive leadership contest with rows over religious beliefs, arguments about the recollection of past events, and widespread criticism of secrecy surrounding the vote.

The contest has also led to a number of other resignations, including that of Ms Sturgeon’s husband Peter Murrell as SNP chief executive.

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes, Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former community safety minister Ash Regan are all in the running for the top job.

Whoever becomes the new SNP leader and first minister will face a number of difficult challenges as they take office.

Here are five of the key priorities that are expected to be at the top of their agenda.

Defining a clear plan for independence

The campaign for Scottish independence did not stop following the results of the 2014 referendum.

The SNP leadership candidates each believe they can lead Scotland to independence but are yet to define a clear route to indyref2.

A special conference due to be held earlier this month to discuss plans was postponed following Ms Sturgeon’s resignation.

Ms Sturgeon’s preference was to treat the next general election, which will be held no later than 24 January 2025, as a de facto referendum.

The new leader will not be obligated to follow the same course and an alternative could be to treat the next Holyrood election, due in 2026, as a de facto referendum.

However, the UK government refuses to consent to a second referendum and the UK Supreme Court last year ruled that the Scottish parliament cannot legislate for another vote without Westminster approval.

Independence supporters will be keen to hear what the new first minister’s plans are to overcome the block, while those who wish to remain part of the UK will be hoping for another decade of fruitless campaigning.

How to progress with gender recognition reforms

The Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill has been a contentious issue within the SNP.

In October last year, Ms Regan quit as community safety minister shortly before MSPs began debating the first stage of the bill. A total of seven SNP MSPs broke the whip to vote against the bill, which would make it easier for trans people to obtain a gender recognition certificate.

It then became a constitutional dispute in January when the UK government took the unprecedented step of using section 35 of the Scotland Act to block the bill from receiving royal assent and becoming law.

The new first minister may wish to challenge the intervention in court. The bill could also be dropped altogether or amended to satisfy the UK government.

Mr Yousaf has stated it would be “responsible” to drop a potential legal challenge if the lord advocate believed the Scottish government would lose.

Ms Regan believes any court challenge would fail, while Ms Forbes has previously pledged to amend the legislation to ensure it cannot be blocked again.

Whatever the decision, there will be displeasure from certain camps and allies of the party.

Tackling Scotland’s drug deaths shame

Drug misuse continues to blight Scotland’s neighbourhoods.

Official data released last year showed there were 1,330 deaths in 2021 due to drug misuse.

It was the first time in eight years the figure had decreased, but Scotland continues to have the highest drug death rate recorded by any country in Europe.

The Scottish government has been attempting to increase access to rehabilitation and support for problematic drug use, including opening two family rehab centres.

An additional £250m has also been invested to tackle the “drug deaths emergency”.

The new first minister is being called to back the Scottish Conservatives’ Right to Recovery Bill and see it through parliament.

The proposed legislation would enshrine in law the right of those struggling with addiction to access their preferred method of treatment, unless ruled harmful by a clinician.

When Sky News visited Scotland’s “Yes” towns and cities to see if the hunger for indyref2 remained, one woman said tackling drug-related deaths should be high on the agenda.

Wendy Duncan, 80, told us that the campaign for independence was a “waste of money and a waste of time”.

She added: “We’re an EU leader when it comes to drug deaths. It’s a scandal and the government should be concentrating on those types of things in Scotland.”

Alleviating the cost of living crisis

The country barely emerged from the COVID pandemic before it plunged into a cost of living crisis.

Households are having to spend more on food and general bills and have seen their energy costs soar.

Businesses have also been hit. The chip shop industry is just one of many that has been battered recently with the price of fish, cooking oil and energy skyrocketing.

As one Glasgow woman told Sky News: “Everything is going up in price, except wages. The new first minister should make sure the minimum wage goes up.”

In Dundee, Jean Whyte, 66, said she fears for those living off benefits and those not in work.

Ms Whyte said: “[My partner and I] are lucky that we have a wee bit of money behind us. But we used to donate to a food bank every two weeks – that’s now once a month or every six weeks.

“I have heard that a lot of people who used to donate to food banks are now using them.”

Turning the NHS around

Scotland’s NHS is yet to recover from an extremely difficult winter which saw A&E waiting times reach record levels.

Although A&E performance has improved since the start of the year, key treatment time targets were again missed earlier this month.

NHS 24 staffing has been increased to help cope with the demand and up to £8m is being provided to health boards to alleviate pressure from delayed discharge.

Unison, GMB and Royal College of Nursing members recently accepted the Scottish government’s pay offer, but union bosses have warned the deal “does nothing to solve” the NHS Scotland staffing crisis.

Patients are said to be “waiting too long for routine operations” and staff are working under “unacceptably stressful conditions”.

In West Dunbartonshire, Margaret Maguire and Catherine McGroggan told Sky News that the country was “suffering”.

Ms McGroggan, 73, claimed the Scottish government continues to blame a lot of the NHS’s struggles on the pandemic.

She stated: “That was two years ago, and people are still struggling to get an appointment with a doctor. I’m not online so how is someone on the phone supposed to see my hands if I’ve got an issue with them?”

Ms Maguire, 75, added: “They are playing on the pandemic too much.”

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With all eyes on who becomes the new leader of Scotland, improving results in these key areas will be a crucial challenge for the next first minister.

UK

Heavy security at Windsor for Trump’s state visit feels ‘American’

Published

3 mins ago

September 16, 2025

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Heavy security at Windsor for Trump's state visit feels 'American'

There has been no expense spared for the UK’s biggest security operation since the King’s coronation.

This time the occasion is both royal and presidential. It is vast and honestly feels, well, American.

The operation has been led by Thames Valley Police, but officers from across the UK will also play a part in the visit.

Windsor is a sea of fluorescent yellow jackets and black and white flat caps. Officers are swarming the town and over the next couple of days will be sending drones into crowds, conducting boat patrols and deploying mounted units in and around the wider area.

Authorities have planned for every eventuality but would not expand on whether the fatal shooting of Charlie Kirk had led them to heighten security measures.

The assassination of the US activist may have intensified consideration about potential threats, but authorities have had extensive security plans in the works for months.

Operational firearms commander Sergeant Dan Hatfield explained that the police presence will be heightened – and every plan has been worked on in conjunction with the Secret Service.

“The residents of Windsor and visitors to Windsor are used to seeing a fairly high police presence, including armed police,” Sgt Hatfield said.

“However, for this state visit, they will see an increase in those numbers. Fortunately, I’ve had experience working with the Americans with all the Secret Service. We have a really good working relationship and work fairly harmoniously together to ensure the safety of everyone involved.”

Whether in the air, on the ground or on the water, safety is paramount.

On a visit with the Thames Valley marine unit, Sky News witnessed what their 24-hour patrol of the waterways would look like.

A section of the River Thames that borders the Castle will be closed off during the visit.

Sergeant Lyn Smith, head of the joint operations marine unit between the Thames Valley and Hampshire forces, said this is the biggest event she has worked on.

“The team is highly trained, we are ready for anything that will happen on or around the water,” she said.

“The marine support unit are going to be doing high visibility patrols, some searching, some specialist searching in and around the area, and working with our partners in the Environment Agency to deliver a safe event.

“Similar to President Macron’s state visit, we are still providing capability on the water, it’s just on a larger scale for us.”

Notably, for the first time in any state visit or royal occasion, the section of the Long Walk leading up to the castle has been cordoned off with large white barricades erected to shield the residence from view.

Airspace over the town is also restricted for the duration of the visit, enforced using police drones and helicopters.

Vehicles will be standing by close to patrol officers on the ground, holding their ballistic helmets, ballistic vests and shields if an incident occurs.

Thousands of protesters plan to descend on Windsor and central London during the visit to demonstrate against the president’s trip.

A rally in central London on Wednesday is expected to draw the largest crowd, but protesters from the Stop Trump Coalition have now confirmed plans for a Tuesday event too.

A royal welcome may not be extended by all – but many will be hoping they won’t drown out the pomp for the president.

UK

Google makes £5bn pledge to Britain – but concerns raised over mooted UK-US tech deal

Published

3 hours ago

September 16, 2025

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Google makes £5bn pledge to Britain - but concerns raised over mooted UK-US tech deal

Google is set to invest £5bn in the UK in the next two years, to support growing demands for AI services.

The announcement, which comes as Google opens a new data centre in Waltham Cross in Hertfordshire, is expected to contribute to the creation of thousands of jobs, the US tech giant said.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves described it as a “vote of confidence” in the UK economy.

The news comes hours before Donald Trump lands in the UK for a state visit at which he and Sir Keir Starmer are widely expected to sign a new UK-US tech deal.

It also follows reports that ChatGPT parent firm OpenAI, and Nvidia, will also unveil billions of dollars’ worth of investment into UK data centres this week.

The chancellor said the investment would boost research and development, capital expenditure and engineering.

However, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has criticised the proposed deal as a “Silicon Valley stitch-up”, and has demanded that the government put it to a vote in parliament.

He said: “I am really concerned the government is going to agree to a Silicon Valley stitch-up that hands tax cuts to tech billionaires while undermining protections for our children online.”

Sir Ed added: “Parents want protections for children online to be kept in place, not traded away in a backroom deal with tech barons.

“We can’t let the government sign up to a deal that benefits Elon Musk at the expense of the British people.”

Google has confirmed it will invest £5bn into capital expenditure, research and development, and related engineering over the next two years, which will include “pioneering” AI research in science and healthcare through its DeepMind operation.

The Silicon Valley firm said the investment will help the UK grow its AI economy and contribute to technological breakthroughs, improvements in cybersecurity and job creation.

Google predicted the investment will help to create 8,250 jobs annually at UK businesses.

DeepMind co-founder and chief executive Demis Hassabis said: “We founded DeepMind in London because we knew the UK had the potential and talent to be a global hub for pioneering AI.

“The UK has a rich history of being at the forefront of technology – from Lovelace to Babbage to Turing – so it’s fitting that we’re continuing that legacy by investing in the next wave of innovation and scientific discovery in the UK.”