THE First Minister has been accused of “wasting” the Scottish Parliament’s time with a debate to celebrate the King’s coronation.
Humza Yousaf tabled a motion in his name – backed by Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross – to commemorate the coronation of King Charles at the weekend.
Alba said there was “no reason whatsoever for him to be wasting parliamentary time paying further homage” to the monarch.
And the Greens shared a similar sentiment, with a spokesperson saying: “It is a waste of parliamentary time. Our views on the Monarchy are well known.”
Yousaf attended Saturday’s event in Westminster Abbey along with former SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford.
The party faced criticism from Alex Salmond for attending, who instead addressed a pro-independence rally in Glasgow organised by All Under One Banner.
During the short discussion in Holyrood on Tuesday, Yousaf was the only party leader who spoke in the debate not to say the phrase “God save the King”.
But Neale Hanvey, Alba’s Westminster leader, accused the FM of “fawning” over the royal family.
He said: “Humza Yousaf’s government should be focused on delivering Scotland’s independence as an urgent and immediate priority.
“As First Minister, he attended the coronation to represent the whole nation, but it was his choice to swear an oath of allegiance to King Charles on Saturday and there is no reason whatsoever for him to be wasting parliamentary time paying further homage to a King whilst people across energy-rich Scotland are living in poverty.
“The Alba Party believe the best choice for Scotland’s future is as an independent republic and we urge the Scottish Government to spend less time fawning over the royals in London and more time delivering self-determination to our people and our nation.”
The First Minister’s office was approached for comment.
