Humza Yousaf makes history as first Muslim leader of a Western country

On March 27 Humza Yousaf was elected First Minister of Scotland. Yousaf, 37, is the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP). Yousaf is the first Muslim to lead any Western country.

In his inaugural address to the Scottish Parliament as First Minister, Mr Yousaf said that his election proved that Scotland is the most progressive country in the world and that race and religion are no barriers to advancement in Scotland. Only 2% of Scots are Muslims and only 6% are non-white. The Muslim community in Scotland resides almost exclusively in its biggest city: Glasgow.

None of the three candidates for the leadership was a white male. Two were white women: Kate Forbes and Ash Regan. Miss Forbes was narrowly beaten by Mr Yousaf. Miss Regan came a distant second.

The SNP has been the largest party in the Scottish Parliament for 16 years. The King then appoints as First Minister whosoever the Parliament elects as First Minister.

The SNP’s raison d’etre is to take Scotland out of the United Kingdom and back into the European Union. The previous First Minister was Nicola Sturgeon. In eight years in office, she failed to bring Scotland out of the UK or even to hold a referendum on it. She cannot do so without the permission of the UK Government and it has withheld such permission. Moreover, she thought she might treat the next election to the Scottish Parliament as a referendum. This would have been very problematic. An election chooses people as much as policies. Every election is about a whole host of policies. Therefore, it cannot deliver a mandate for a question of such constitutional import.

Nonetheless, Miss Sturgeon left office with approval ratings that any politician would covet. Hers are big shoes to fill. She will be a hard act to follow. The unionist parties (Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats) think that Yousaf’s election is the best news for them since they won the referendum.

In 2014 Scotland held a referendum on the question: ‘Should Scotland be an independent country?’ The result was 55%.

In 2016 62% of Scots voted to Remain in the European Union. But in the UK as a whole only 48% voted Remain. The United Kingdom left the EU in 2020. Because of Brexit people in North Britain are asking for a second referendum. They chose to stay in the UK whilst the UK was still a European Union member state. However, in 2014 there was already a possibility that the United Kingdom would quit the EU.

Opinion polls show that the independence question is on a knife edge. The status quo option usually does better than the opinion polls suggest. Therefore, if a referendum on Scottish separation from the UK were held again today the result would probably be 52% ‘No.’

The SNP’s desire to leave the UK and rejoin the EU is beset with difficulties. Even if Caledonia left the United Kingdom it would not get into the European Union. All 27 EU member states would have to approve it. Spain has vowed it would veto Scotland forever. What would Scotland do for trade outside of the UK and EU? It was hard for the UK with 70 million people to negotiate trade deals. How would Scotland manage with 6 million people? What would Scotland do for defence with an army of 7,000 soldiers? NATO might never allow it in. Sweden and Finland have still not gotten in a year after applying to join. What would North Britain do for a currency without the Pound Sterling? They might never be allowed to use the Euro. After over a century of existence, the SNP has not figured this out.

Yousaf is a practising Muslim and was fasting for Ramadan at the time of his election. He was born in Glasgow, United Kingdom to Pakistani parents. His grandparents shifted from Pakistani Punjab in the 1960s whilst being unable to speak English.

Some of Humza Yousaf’s political positions seem staggering for a faithful Muslim. He is in favour of same-sex marriage and abortion. One of his first acts as First Minister was to push through legislation allowing people to legally change gender aged 16. That is a strange priority in a country bedevilled by collapsing public services, intermittent strikes and a cost of living crisis. Many say that it shows that the SNP is in hoc to loony left ideologues.

On Yousaf’s first day as First Minister, the proceedings of the Scottish Parliament were interrupted by noisy demonstrators. It looks like he is in for a rough ride.

Humza Yousaf recalled how as a teenager after 9/11 he felt like a suspect. People doubted his allegiance to the United Kingdom. He was attracted to the SNP because its then leader Alex Salmond denounced the coalition of the willing’s intervention in Iraq. After university, Yousaf went to work for the SNP. He was then elected to the Scottish Parliament. He has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since he was 25. He is accused of never having worked outside politics.

Yousaf was appointed to the Scottish Cabinet. He served as Health Minister. By all accounts, he has been a disaster. 12% of nurses’ posts are unfilled and 6% of doctors’ posts are vacant. Waiting lists are getting longer and longer. Cancer patients are dying avoidably because they do not get oncological treatment until they have reached stage 4. Doctors and nurses are overworked and underpaid. Not all of this is Humza Yousaf’s fault. The economic situation means that it is hard to pay medical staff well. There is 10% inflation. The UK Government has tightened immigration making it harder to recruit medical personnel from overseas.

Given Yousaf’s terrible tenure as Health Minister, it is astounding that he succeeded in being elected leader of his party. His approval rating is -20%. That is not much of a honeymoon.

The next Scottish Parliamentary elections are in May 2025. At the moment the Labour Party is ahead in the polls. Labour ruled the roost in Scotland from 1955 to 2007. It looks as though Labour might finally win again. However, as Harold Wilson said ‘’a week is a long time in politics.’’ Anything could happen in the next few years.

The SNP is stronger in rural Scotland and northern Scotland. For almost 100 years Labour won Glasgow. But as Yousaf reached adulthood, the SNP achieved a breakthrough. There is a strong chance that his native city will revert to its former Labour loyalty.

The author is a political analyst from the UK. He can be watched on YouTube: George from Ireland