Nicola Sturgeon’s arrest, the iPad scandal & failed gender bill – A look back at a shock year in Scottish Politics
AS 2023 began, Nicola Sturgeon was still First Minister and while the SNP were sliding in the polls, they were still on top.
The 12 months that have followed saw the resignation of the dominant force in Scottish politics for the past decade - and a police probe that rocked the Nats establishment.
Amid the turmoil, there have been a string of public service crises and a major defeat for the SNP over gender self-ID cause that they had championed under Ms Sturgeon.
Will 2023 be remembered as the year the SNP went off the rails?
We’ll find out in 2024.
For now, here’s a reminder of the rollercoaster year in Scottish politics, while we dish out our fun awards for the lowlights of the year.
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January
THE battle over gender self-ID spilled into the new year — leading to a highly awkward month for Nicola Sturgeon’s SNP.
Tory ministers made a historic first use of a veto under devolution laws to block Holyrood’s Gender Recognition Reform Bill, arguing it interfered with equality rules in the rest of the UK.
The row intensified when trans woman Isla Bryson, formerly Adam Graham, was convicted of raping two women and initially sent to a female jail.
Nats were still clear of Labour in the polls but in further troubles, teacher strikes closing schools across Scotland.
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Ms Sturgeon denied rumours she planned to quit, saying she’d “plenty left in the tank”.
February
IN a shock press conference at Bute House, Ms Sturgeon sensationally revealed she was resigning after eight years in the top job.
The Nats heavyweight said it was time for her to give up the “brutal” life of being First Minister and concentrate on her personal life.
The huge announcement threw the SNP into an immediate leadership race with Health Secretary Humza Yousaf, Finance Secretary Kate Forbes and ex-minister turned gender self-ID rebel Ash Regan all throwing their hats in the ring.
Ms Forbes’ campaign almost fell apart immediately after she was pilloried within the SNP for saying she’d have opposed same-sex marriage.
March
THE SNP’S first leadership election in years led to bitter infighting and controversy over candidates being in the dark on numbers of members who would vote for the winner.
Nats HQ put out misleading statements and ultimately revealed the party had far fewer sign-ups than thought.
It led to chief executive Peter Murrell — Ms Sturgeon’s husband — sensationally quitting.
TV debates fuelled the internal fire lit by Ms Sturgeon’s resignation, with Ms Forbes blasting “establishment candidate” Humza Yousaf and trashing his reputation.
But Mr Yousaf backed by ‘Team Sturgeon’, did just enough to edge out Ms Forbes and was named new SNP leader and First Minister.
April
JUST days after taking over, Humza Yousaf’s SNP was rocked when cops raided predecessor Nicola Sturgeon’s home — complete with a forensics tent to hide what officers were up to.
Peter Murrell was arrested and questioned under caution by detectives investigating the SNP’s finances after a complaint over the fate of £600,000 of donations for an indy campaign.
Ms Sturgeon said the probe was her “worst nightmare” but denied it was behind her quitting.
SNP HQ was raided and a motorhome seized from outside her mother-in-law’s house.
Nats treasurer Colin Beattie was later arrested on the day Mr Yousaf gave his first major policy speech.
May
THE Scottish Sun revealed cops had been made to wait two weeks — until Ms Sturgeon had left office as First Minister — before the Crown gave them the nod to raid her home.
Elsewhere, departing Children’s Commissioner Bruce Adamson savaged Mr Yousaf and his predecessor Ms Sturgeon for “failing to deliver” for Scots kids with a trail of broken promises
Scottish Greens minister Lorna Slater was slammed for chartering a £1,200 private boat for an official visit to the Isle of Rum, rather than taking one of Scotland’s publicly-owned ferry firms.
Republican Mr Yousaf and his wife Nadia El-Nakla attended King Charles III’s Coronation ceremony.
June
NICOLA Sturgeon’s arrest on June 11 sent shockwaves across the political world.
She spent around seven hours in custody and was quizzed under caution by police before being released without charge and protested her innocence of any wrongdoing”.
The Scottish Government’s deposit return eco scheme for bottles and cans was shelved — and as good as axed — after ministers sparked a war with industry chiefs.
Labour’s new energy plan sparked a backlash with confirmation it would end new North Sea oil and gas exploration.
And sad news came that SNP veteran Winnie Ewing had died aged 93 on June 21.
July
SHOCK news emerged that Mhairi Black — the SNP’s deputy Westminster leader and one Britain’s youngest MP — will stand down at the next election.
Amid SNP infighting, the Paisley and Renfrewshire South politician’s colleague Angus MacNeil was suspended from the SNP for a week following a clash with the party’s chief whip, Brendan O’Hara.
The SNP’s finances were also back in the news after auditors revealed party chiefs had failed to keep documents relating to cash and cheques for membership payments and donations.
In happier news for Mr Yousaf, strike action by junior doctors was called off at the 11th hour after a fresh pay offer from the Scottish Government.
August
NICOLA Sturgeon and her husband Peter Murrell were spotted in his untaxed car in Edinburgh.
It came just days after it emerged SNP deputy leader Keith Brown had also failed to pay his car tax.
A by-election in Rutherglen and Hamilton West was called after Covid rulebreaker Margaret Ferrier was finally booted out by constituents in Scotland’s first Recall petition.
Exam pass rates in Scotland fell, and while drug deaths dropped, they were still far worse than the rest of the UK.
The Scottish Sun revealed Ms Sturgeon had been stripped of her 24/7 cop security after keeping it for months following her resignation, and had signed a deal for her memoirs.
September
HUMZA Yousaf’s first programme for government saw him branded a “poor Nicola Sturgeon tribute act”, with a series of promises already made by his predecessor.
The cost of the scandal-hit Scottish Government ferries project, soared by tens of millions, with taxpayers now facing a bill of almost £400million.
Patients too were suffering with a record 820,000 forced to wait for NHS treatment or diagnostic tests.
There were also more school strikes as non-teaching staff walked out over pay.
On the Rutherglen and Hamilton West campaign trail, we revealed an SNP zero-hours contract row after chiefs admitted they’d resorted to paying door-to-door leafleters.
October
LABOUR’S Michael Shanks was congratulated by Scots leader Anas Sarwar after trouncing the SNP in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by- election — leading to predictions they could overtake the Nats in Scotland.
At the SNP conference, Humza Yousaf made the shock announcement that he’d freeze council tax.
His first conference as leader was overshadowed by the outbreak of war in the Middle East, with his in-laws trapped in Gaza for weeks.
At the Tory conference, PM Rishi Sunak ribbed Ms Sturgeon over her arrest.
SNP MP Lisa Cameron defected to the Tories, while MSP Ash Regan defected to Alex Salmond’s Alba.
November
HEALTH Secretary Michael Matheson was mired in scandal after it emerged he’d racked up an £11,000 data roaming bill for taxpayers while on a family holiday to Morocco.
He initially said the bill was due to him carrying out constituency work on his work iPad.
But he later claimed his sons had been watching football.
He misled the Press and now faces a Holyrood inquiry.
Ex-First Minister Alex Salmond launched a fresh legal case against the Scottish Government, suing for millions over its unlawful probe into him.
The month ended on a sombre note with the death of former Labour Chancellor Alistair Darling aged 70, prompting tributes far and wide.
December
THE Scottish Government lost its court challenge over the UK Government’s gender self-ID veto.
Humza Yousaf later declined to appeal.
Experts said Scots school standards had been hit by a “calamity” with international tests showing performance slumping and behind England.
Scotland’s NHS waiting lists hit another record high.
The Holyrood Budget, announced by Finance Secretary Shona Robison, saw a new tax band for higher earners.
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In a win for children’s charity Aberlour and The Scottish Sun’s campaign, SNP ministers provided a £1.5million fund to wipe school meal debt.
Pollsters suggested Labour may have overtaken Nats.
The Tartan Turkey Awards
Flip-Flop of the Year — Nicola Sturgeon resigned weeks after telling Scots she had “plenty left in the tank”.
Blunderer of the Year — Greens minister Lorna Slater’s bungles included botching the deposit-return scheme and chartering a boat for her team on a visit — costing 16 times more than the public ferry.
Clingon of the Year — Health Secretary Michael Matheson refused to go despite misleading the public over his £11,000 MSP iPad charges while on holiday.
Hospital Pass of the Year — New First Minister Humza Yousaf for receiving a nightmare of a ball from predecessor Nicola Sturgeon. He relished the challenge, but came out a crock and his side slumped in the polls.
Rebel of the Year — SNP MSP Fergus Ewing kept on slating SNP policies until he was finally suspended from the party. Then he kept on slating SNP policies.
Loner of the Year — The SNP’s Ash Regan defected to Alex Salmond’s Alba Party, becoming their only MSP. But then nobody wanted an office beside her.
Brass Neck of the Year — Ex-Tory peer Michelle Mone admitted lying over a PPE scandal but invoked a similar defence to Clingon of the Year Michael Matheson, saying she did it to “protect my family”.
Chancer of the Exchequer Award — Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton was clocked making a pint of order — sorry, point of order — via video link from just outside the Holyrood bar.
Potty Mouth of the Year — Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross was left red-faced for shouting “f***’s sake” as a Just Stop Oil protester butted in on him at First Minister’s Questions.
Red Face of the Year — Sir Keir Starmer failed to name a single member of the Scottish Labour shadow cabinet — weeks after Labour’s Jackie Baillie slated Rishi Sunak for a similar flop on naming Scottish Tory chiefs.
Underachiever of the Year — Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary Angus Robertson’s delayed £150-million census revealed its final response rate of 89.8 per cent — below the 94 per cent minimum aim, and compared to 97 per cent in the rest of the UK. But at least he’s had some jollies, clocking up more than 46,000 miles of air travel in 18 months.
