Scotland's wobbling pro-independence party ditches coalition with Greens

Opponents said on Thursday they would seek to oust the leader of Scotland after the pro-independence party that has dominated Scottish politics for more than a decade abandoned a coalition with the Greens. Scottish National Party leader Humza Yousaf, who serves as first minister in Scotland's devolved government and favours leaving the UK, ended an alliance with the Greens over a decision to scrap a climate change emissions reduction target last week.

Opponents said on Thursday they would seek to oust the leader of Scotland after the pro-independence party that has dominated Scottish politics for more than a decade abandoned a coalition with the Greens.

Scottish National Party leader Humza Yousaf, who serves as first minister in Scotland's devolved government and favours leaving the UK, ended an alliance with the Greens over a decision to scrap a climate change emissions reduction target last week. The Scottish arm of the Conservative Party that governs Britain said it would seek to topple Yousaf with a no-confidence motion, calling him a "lame duck". Other opposition parties did not immediately disclose how they would vote.

The SNP has led Scotland's devolved government since 2011, but its fortunes faltered since a funding scandal and the resignation of a party leader last year. The party holds broadly centre-left views, but its coalition with the Greens had highlighted splits over how progressive its pitch should be as it seeks to woo back voters on social and environmental issues beyond its core call for independence.

Earlier this month, a YouGov poll put the main British opposition Labour Party slightly ahead of the SNP in Scotland for the first time since Scottish voters chose to remain part of the United Kingdom in an independence referendum in 2014. The SNP has more than twice as many Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) as its nearest rivals, but its 63 seats out of 129 are just short of an outright majority, forcing it to join forces since 2021 with the Greens who hold seven.

Yousaf told a news conference he had notified the Greens he was terminating the coalition agreement with immediate effect, because it was creating instability: "It is in the best interests of the people of Scotland to pursue a different arrangement." He added that the SNP planned to run a minority government for the rest of the full term until Scottish parliamentary elections due in 2026.

The Conservatives have 31 MSPs, and Labour - once the dominant force in Scotland - has 22. The SNP also overwhelmingly dominates Scotland's representation in the British parliament in Westminster, and its poll slide in favour of Labour could have a major impact on the outcome of a UK-wide general election expected this year.

Yousaf said he hoped to work with the Greens and other opposition parties outside of formal agreements, but they ridiculed him for abandoning the coalition days after saying he favoured continuing it. "By ending the agreement in such a weak and thoroughly hopeless way, Humza Yousaf has signalled that when it comes to political co-operation, he can no longer be trusted," Scottish Green co-leader Lorna Slater said.

The SNP's poll leads have waned since then-leader Nicola Sturgeon stepped down in early 2023. Her husband was charged last week with embezzling funds from the SNP. She has been arrested and questioned but not charged. Both deny wrongdoing.

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