Humza Yousaf becomes the first ethnic minority leader of the SNP

• Aparna Sreevalsan
• 28 March, 2023

PAKISTANI-origin Humza Yousaf, 37, became the first ethnic minority First Minister of Scotland succeeding Nicola Sturgeon.

He is also the first Muslim leader of a major UK political party, as well as the first Muslim leader of a Western European country, and the Scottish National Party (SNP)`s first Asian leader.

He was the Health and Social Care Minister in the departing Sturgeon’s Cabinet up to her departure announcement last month, which set off a leadership election for the ruling party in the devolved region.

Yousaf, a practising Muslim was fasting for Ramadan during the contest and was announced as winner on Monday afternoon defeating Kate Forbes and Ash Regan in the race to succeed Nicola Sturgeon.

In his victory speech in Edinburgh, Yousaf said, “From the Punjab to our parliament, this is a journey for our generations.”

The politician was raised in Glasgow and is a native of the city. His father, Muzaffar Yousaf, was born in Pakistan, and his family moved to Glasgow from Mian Channu (City in the Punjab Province of Pakistan) in the 1960s. Shaaista Bhutta, Yousaf’s mother, was born in Kenya and immigrated to Scotland together with her family.

 

He referred to his immigrant background during his speech, saying that when his grandparents first came to Scotland in the 1960s, they hardly knew any English and had no idea “in their wildest dreams” that their grandson would one day be elected the First Minister of Scotland.

Yousaf promised to put the independence movement into “fifth gear” after winning, adding that he would proceed with his intentions to appoint an independent minister.

He said: “I am a proud Scot and equally a proud European too and Scotland is a European nation,” he added in his speech. “We want to return to the European Union and play our part in building a continent that is based on human rights, on peace, prosperity and social justice.”

He also said he would move forward with his plans to sue the UK government for its rejection of Sturgeon’s contentious gender law, which would have allowed Scots to change their legal sex by attaching a declaration.

Yousaf created history in 2016 when he took is oath as a new MSP in both English and Urdu while wearing the customary Scottish kilt.