SNP MSP Audrey Nicoll has addressed suspicions she will not run again for Holyrood due to pressure from Stephen Flynn after he announced he wanted to run for her position in 2026.
Nicoll’s Holyrood seat in Scotland was thrust into the spotlight last November after Flynn announced his intention to run for it – while remaining an MP in Westminster.
At the time, Nicoll told The National she was ready for the contest. She welcomed it.
This was very different to her statement released on Sunday, telling constituents she would be to stepping down at the next Holyrood election, consequently clearing the way for Flynn to fight for a place in the Scottish Parliament.
The news came just before it was reported allies of Flynn had drawn up an all-women "hit list" of SNP MSPs to oust before the election.
So what has changed?
Nicoll wanted to make it entirely clear, this was a personal decision.
"By the time you reach my age, and especially having worked in a male-dominated work environment for 31 years, I'm not in the game of being pressurised by men into doing something that isn't right for me," she said.
Nicoll, previously a police officer more than three decades, took time over the Christmas break to really reflect on her next steps, like a lot of her fellow MSPs. Flynn's announcement in November had exacted a reaction from Nicoll, and her gut reaction was to come out swinging.
She was also just seeing the fruits of several impactfully pieces of work being done by the Criminal Justice Committee, of which she is convenor, and this gave her a lot of faith in her own ability.
Nicoll said: "I think there was maybe a bit of me that put myself under a bit of pressure insofar as, that work had to go on, and I was up for continuing that work. There was also a bit of a sense of loyalty to constituents.
"At that point, I was very open-minded to coming back. But over the festive break with changing family circumstances and personal reflection, it was a great opportunity for me to really take a bit of time out, get a bit of headspace, and weigh up the pros and cons."
Nicoll said she is "very happy" in the decision she's taken, calling it the right one for her and her family.
"At the end of a lot of reflection and thinking things through, and conversations with my family, it very much feels in line with where I probably intended being at this point," she shares.
"I'd only ever really planned to come in for one session, and at the end of this session, I'll be 65-years-old.
"As is the way with these things, I sort of settled into the world of Holyrood, it became such a comfortable place for me. I have loved every minute of being there.
"So I probably did find myself contemplating coming back and going again, but that would have been a really big decision for me to make."
Nicoll said on one hand, it was a real option, but on the other, stepping back is really where she is in her Holyrood career.
The MSP will be missed, with John Swinney paying tribute to her "superb contribution" following her announcement to stand down, and one former staffer calling her "a brilliant role model for women in politics".
She has overseen several pieces of legislation through this term of parliament, including the Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform Bill, the Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) and the Bail and Release from Custody Bill, ensuring her own experience as a police officer informed her decision-making.
Now, her family, creative arts, the great outdoors and nature restoration are all things Nicoll said she can't wait to spend more time on.
The 'hit list'
The alleged hit list identified a group of five women Flynn wanted to eliminate from the Scottish Parliament to make room for ex-MPs. His team denied the existence of the list, while his chief whip in Westminster, who is the party's only female MP, also defended his character calling the claims "nonsense".
"The hit list is not something that I was aware of, it's certainly not come across my radar in Holyrood," Nicoll said, adding: "But we've got to be careful to how we respond to that."
Nicoll intends to reach out to the five women named – Karen Adam, Evelyn Tweed, Collette Stevenson, Jackie Dunbar, and Emma Roddick – as well as other female colleagues, to offer support ahead of making any big decisions on their futures.
She pointed out the SNP had done a lot of work to bring gender balance, not just into the party, but into the Scottish Parliament and Cabinet, and this must be a key focus of 2026.
"I want to see the party and, in particular, politicians to focus on how we retain that gender balance in Holyrood in 2026, because that work is really important.
"Women bring a massive amount of hard work, experience, and commitment to any parliament, and have absolutely done that in Holyrood.
"If you look at the women, my colleagues, who are allegedly on the hit list, two of them are conveners in the parliament, one's a former minister, and one was probably in politics when half of the younger members of the party were at school.
"These are women that are bringing a massive, and making a massive, contribution to the parliament."
'Set the distracting stuff to the side'
Nicoll said that all parliamentarians in Scotland are in the process of making a decision about their next five years, and political distractions are not ideal.
She said: "I wouldn't pretend, or deny that the last few months have been a distraction and unnecessary, but we've come out the other side of it, and I'm in a really good place now.
"We're still a year out from the election.
"This is a time when women and men want to be fully focused and be able to make a really informed decision about their own future.
"I think that's another reason why we need to set the distracting stuff to the side."
