Scotland's first minister, Humza Yousaf, on Thursday abruptly ended the coalition agreement between his Scottish National Party and the Scottish Greens, creating a new set of challenges for an embattled leader. difficulties, his party has been embroiled in a sponsorship scandal since last year.
Scottish government decision soften climate change goalsand disagreement within the coalition about transgender rights policyhas increased tensions between the two parties that have governed together since August 2021.
But Mr Yousaf's decision to scrap the coalition appeared to take Lorna Slater, co-leader of the Green Party, by surprise on Thursday morning. She accused the SNP of “an act of cowardice”, adding that Mr Yousaf “may no longer be trustworthy”.
Does this mean the end of the Scottish government?
Not now. The Scottish Conservatives are pushing for a vote of no confidence in Mr Yousaf, which the opposition Scottish Labor Party has already done. signaling it will support, and that could happen next week. But that vote involves confidence in Mr. Yousaf, not the government, so its implications will be unclear even if he loses. More generally, the rules make it difficult to force an early election which could cause the SNP to leave government in Scotland.
Now, the collapse of the coalition means Mr. Yousaf must lead a minority government. But this is not the first time the SNP has governed as a minority: They did so after the 2007 and 2016 elections. The Scottish Parliament has more balanced electoral system than the British Parliament, as it was established by clear purpose represents the diverse needs of the people and encourages compromise between political parties.
Mr. Yousaf said Thursday he hopes to continue working with the Green Party but in a less formal way. In the harsh aftermath of Thursday's split, the Green Party said it would vote against Mr. Yousaf in a vote of confidence.
Assuming the government survives, the SNP will be two votes short of a majority and will have to reach out to other political parties in the Scottish Parliament to ensure that their key legislation is passed.
Where did it all go wrong?
Mr Yousaf said on Thursday that the coalition agreement had “served its purpose”, but the main tension between the SNP and the Greens was over climate policy following the government's decision to limit its commitments me.
When Nicola Sturgeon was first minister, the Scottish government made an ambitious commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 75% by 2030, compared with 1990 levels.
But an important report from an independent panel appointed by the government in March found that the target was “no longer trustworthy,” and last week, the SNP said it would scrap its annual targets.
After that announcement, Patrick Harvie, co-leader of the Green Party, said he was “angry and disappointed” but that he supported retaining the coalition because it had made significant achievements on climate and other policies. However, the Scottish Green Party is planning for its members to vote on whether to stay in or leave the coalition, and no one knows how that will play out.
Is climate policy the only disagreement?
Policy on transgender issues is also controversial, leaving some Green Party members unhappy about the decision of the National Health Service in Scotland. Temporarily stop prescribing puberty blockers and other hormone treatments for adolescents. That followed an independence Evaluate gender services in England by Hilary Cass, a pediatrician. “Many young people will be concerned about the impact the decision to pause puberty blockers will have on their health journey,” Gillian Mackay saida Green Party member of the Scottish Parliament, added, “We should stand in solidarity with them.”
Why now?
The coalition deal was reached when Ms Sturgeon was Scotland's first minister and leader of the SNP, which campaigns for Scottish independence. She resigned last year, and her husband, Peter Murrell, was recently charged on charges of embezzling party funds when he was the party's long-time executive director. Ms Sturgeon was arrested and questioned in connection with a similar investigation last year but was released and not charged.
The police investigation into the SNP's funding has plunged the party into crisis. Since taking over as leader, Mr Yousaf has struggled to assert his authority and with a UK general election scheduled for later this year, opinion polls show Britain's main opposition Labor Party is posing a new challenge in Scotland, where it once dominated.
For Mr. Yousaf, who has faced criticism on a variety of issues, the options are narrowing. Faced with the option of waiting to know the outcome of the vote on whether the coalition's agreement with the Green Party would survive, he decided to be proactive. After announcing the end of the pact on Thursday, he told a news conference: “This is about leadership.”
When asked by a reporter whether his approach was that “breaking up is better than being abandoned,” Mr. Yousaf replied: “Personally, I don't know.”
