HUMZA Yousaf has confirmed he will step down as an MSP at the next Holyrood election.
In a post on Twitter/X, he said that 2026 would mark 15 years of service as an MSP and that the “time will be right to for me to move on”.
“As the son of immigrants, I could never have imagined the incredible political journey I have been on,” he said.
"Thank you to all of those who have supported me over the years."
Come 2026, I will have served 15 years as an MSP. The time will be right for me to move on. As the son of immigrants, I could never have imagined the incredible political journey I have been on. I feel blessed. Thank you to all of those who have supported me over the years. pic.twitter.com/m1WmuG09X7
— Humza Yousaf (@HumzaYousaf) December 17, 2024
Yousaf served as Scotland's first minister from March 2023 until May of this year, when he resigned following the collapse of the Bute House Agreement.
In a letter sent to John Swinney confirming his plans, Yousaf said: "I struggle to find the words to appropriately convery what an honour it is to sit in our nation's Parliament as the elected representative for Glasgow Pollok.
"However, come 2026, I will have served 15 years as an MSP, 12 of those years as a minister in the Scottish Government.
"The next Scottish Parliament elections in 2026 will be the right time for me to move on, to provide an opportunity for the next generation of MSPs to step forward, and to explore where I can best make a contribution in the future, in helping to tackle some of the most pressing challenges our world faces.
"There is no way the son of immigrants could have ever dreamt of being the leader of his country when he was a boy.
"People who looked like me and who were of my faith simply were not represented on the front benches in politics anywhere in the UK."
Yousaf held a number of ministerial roles prior to becoming first minister, including as health and justice secretary.
From 2016 to 2018 he worked as the minister for transport and the islands and was minister for Europe and international development from 2012 to 2016.
On his Twitter/X page, Yousaf shared a separate interview with news agency Zeteo where he explained his decision further.
He said he was stepping back from "frontline politics altogether" and that it was time to "make way for the next generation of elected members".
Yousaf added he hoped to use his experience of things he has learned to do as well as "what not to do" in order to "make a contribution on the global stage".
Asked about the Bute House Agreement specifically, the former FM said: "The Greens probably would have rejected the Bute House Agreement, their membership was probably going to do that.
"But things became really difficult in my part to, to be frank, after a pretty challenging interview for the Green co-leader on an issue of trans health care."
Prior to Yousaf stepping down, the Scottish Greens had announced there would be a vote on whether to remain in the power-sharing deal with the SNP.
"There was people in my own party who were very supportive of the Bute House Agreement now demanding that it was terminated.
"And look, me sacrificing my leadership and terminating that agreement, that to me was still the right thing to have done.
"My successor is no longer encumbered with that deal."
