Kate Forbes would be ‘First Minister for the new decade’

The Highlands MSP is currently up against Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former Community Security Secretary Ash Regan in the race for SNP leadership and the keys to Bute House.

Continuity, Ms Forbes told the BBC’s Sunday Show, “will not cut it” in what could be seen as a veiled swipe at Mr Yousaf, who has been described as offering more of it – although the Health Secretary has rejected the label, saying he would be his “own man.”

Read more: Ash Regan: ‘Gold Standard’ of Choice for Scottish Independence

Ms Forbes added: “Keep doing the same things, you will get the same results and that’s why I think we need a sea change.”

Ms Forbes said she would seek to invest in small businesses to give them “breathing space” to help the economy grow, but additional capacity in government could lead to increased support for Scottish independence.

“To do that, they need a leader with the skills and experience to execute,” she added.

When asked if she thought Ms Sturgeon and Alex Salmond would both be considered competent, she said: “Absolutely, but we need a new leader for a new decade and that new leader needs to have a special focus and experience and have a desire to eliminate poverty through economic prosperity.

READ ALSO: Humza Yousaf Promises Independence Workshops And ‘Refutation Service’

“We’re in a certain moment and I think I’m the leader who has that skill and that track record.”

Asked whether her rival, Mr Yousaf, could have done a better job of managing the NHS, Ms Forbes refused to look into the issue, saying instead Scotland “needed to look seriously at delivery”.

But Scottish Tory leader Craig Hoy said Ms Forbes “portrays herself as an outsider” but has been a senior minister in the Scottish Government since 2020, adding: “Kate Forbes cannot be the new broom when her fingerprints are everywhere.” are failures of the SNP government.”

Scottish Labor MP Jackie Baillie said Sunday’s candidates’ comments showed all three were “pathetic options” and described Ms Regan as “absolutely obsessed with independence” and said Ms Forbes was trying “to break away from the SNP record of failure”.

READ ALSO: SNP Politicians Drop Support Of Kate Forbes After Opposition To Gay Rights

Ms Forbes also used her television appearance to blame the media for continuing to focus on her views on social issues as she refused to further engage in her opposition to equal marriage.

She said the constant question she receives “is mainly because journalists keep wanting to come back to these issues.”

Ms Forbes added: “I have answered these questions fully and would urge people to recognize that I have faithfully served all the people of Scotland over the past few years and that would be my obligation to continue.”

Ms Forbes sparked fury inside and outside the SNP after she said she had voted against equal marriage and said she thought it was “wrong” to have children outside of marriage.

Asked how the LBGTQ+ community in Scotland can be confident that they are standing up for their rights, Ms Forbes said: “Underlying my whole approach to politics is a belief in the inherent dignity of every human being.

“I understand that you wish to bring the conversation back to the issues that I have addressed extensively.

“We’re in a debate now, and that debate is about a whole range of different issues that people care about.”