Scottish finance minister Kate Forbes said on Monday she would run in the leadership contest to replace Nicola Sturgeon as Scottish National Party leader and Scotland’s first minister.
Sturgeon’s unexpected exit has left a question mark over the SNP’s fight for independence as the Westminster government has blocked its attempts to hold a second vote after a 2014 referendum saw“I can’t sit back and watch our nation thwarted on the road to self determination,” 32-year-old Forbes said in a video posted on Twitter.
The SNP has said it will choose a new leader within six weeks through a ballot of its members, which will close on March 27. Sturgeon will stay on until a successor has been picked. Forbes, a Christian, was among senior politicians who urged the Scottish government in 2019 not to rush into gender reform legislation. Sturgeon became embroiled in a row over transgender rights over the divisive bill. It was eventually passed in December but has been blocked by the British government.
We need to COMPLETELY REFORM our systems. No more VOTING. NO MORE WAITING.