US EditionKate Forbes: Deputy First Minister to Stand Down as MSP
SCOTLAND, AUG 4 – Kate Forbes will not seek re-election to focus on family after nearly a decade in public service, holding key roles including Deputy First Minister and Economy Secretary.
- On Monday morning, Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes announced she will step back in 2026 to focus on her family, not seeking re-election at the May 2026 Scottish Parliament election.
- Reflecting over the summer recess, Forbes informed First Minister John Swinney she did not want to "miss any more of the precious early years of family life."
- Since 2016, Kate Forbes has served as MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch and became Deputy First Minister in May 2024 after John Swinney took office.
- Amid an exodus of MSPs, Forbes's departure joins around 30 others not seeking re-election in 2026, nine months before the election, challenging the SNP's position.
- With less than a year to go until the Scottish Parliament election and after finalising its candidate list, Forbes announced she will not seek re-election, ending nearly ten years of service to Highland communities.
20 Articles
20 Articles
Scotland needed Kate Forbes
Not predicted, but perhaps predictable. Kate Forbes, a young woman whose politics are unusually values-based, is quitting Holyrood at the tender age of 35. Forbes, by some margin the outstanding SNP talent of her generation, is walking away from the job of deputy first minister and the prospect of succeeding John Swinney in the top post within the next few years. That she is doing so in order to spend more time with her family, particularly her …
Kate Forbes accused of 'abandoning stage' as Deputy FM 'gives up on SNP' by deciding to stand down
Ex-Scottish National Party leadership contender Kate Forbes has been accused of "abandoning the stage" by confirming her decision to stand down at next year's Holyrood election.Forbes, who serves as John Swinney's Deputy First Minister and represents Skye, Lochaber & Badenoch in the Scottish Parliament, said in a statement that she did not want to "seek re-election and miss any more of the precious early years of family life".However, the mother…
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