Humza Yousaf

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The Right Honourable Humza Yousaf MSP
Official portrait, 2023
First Minister of Scotland
Outgoing
Assumed office 29 March 2023
Monarch	Charles III
Deputy	Shona Robison
Preceded by	Nicola Sturgeon
Leader of the Scottish National Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 27 March 2023
Depute	Keith Brown
Preceded by	Nicola Sturgeon
Ministerial offices (2012–2023) Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care In office 20 May 2021 – 28 March 2023 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Jeane Freeman Succeeded by Michael Matheson Cabinet Secretary for Justice In office 26 June 2018 – 20 May 2021 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Michael Matheson Succeeded by Keith Brown Minister for Transport and the Islands In office 18 May 2016 – 26 June 2018 First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Derek Mackay Succeeded by Paul Wheelhouse Minister for Europe and International Development[a] In office 6 September 2012 – 18 May 2016 First Minister Alex Salmond Nicola Sturgeon Preceded by Office established Succeeded by Alasdair Allan
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow Pollok
Incumbent
Assumed office 5 May 2016
Preceded by	Johann Lamont
Majority	7,105 (21.0%)
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow (1 of 7 Regional MSPs)
In office 5 May 2011 – 5 May 2016
Personal details
Born	Humza Haroon Yousaf (1985-04-07) 7 April 1985 (age 39) Rutherglen, South Lanarkshire, Scotland
Political party	Scottish National Party
Spouses	Gail Lythgoe ​ ​ (m. 2010; div. 2017)​ Nadia El-Nakla ​ (m. 2019)​
Children	1
Residence	Bute House
Education	Hutchesons' Grammar School
Alma mater	University of Glasgow
Signature
Website	humzayousaf.scot First Minister of Scotland

Humza Haroon Yousaf (/ˈhʌmzə ˈjuːsəf/;^[1] born 7 April 1985) is a Scottish politician who has served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) since March 2023. He served under his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon as justice secretary from 2018 to 2021 and then as health secretary from 2021 to 2023. He has been Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Pollok since 2016, having previously been a regional MSP for Glasgow from 2011 to 2016.

Born to Pakistani immigrants in Glasgow, Yousaf studied politics at the University of Glasgow, before working as a parliamentary assistant for Bashir Ahmad, the first Muslim and second generation immigrant elected to the Scottish Parliament. Following Ahmad's death in 2009, Yousaf went on to work as a parliamentary assistant for both Alex Salmond and Sturgeon. Prior to his election to parliament in 2011, he worked in the SNP's party headquarters as a communications officer. Appointed as a junior minister under Salmond in 2012, Yousaf served as Minister for External Affairs and International Development until 2014.

Yousaf supported Sturgeon's successful leadership bid in 2014 and after she was sworn in as first minister, he was subsequently appointed as Europe minister before being appointed Minister for Transport and the Islands in 2016. As part of a cabinet reshuffle of Sturgeon's second ministry in 2018, Yousaf was promoted to the cabinet as justice secretary. He introduced a controversial bill to parliament which ultimately became law as the Hate Crime and Public Order Act 2021.^[2][3] In 2021, he was appointed health secretary during the later phase of the COVID-19 pandemic and was responsible for the NHS's recovery, as well as the mass roll-out of the vaccination programme which began under his predecessor. Following Sturgeon's resignation as leader of the SNP and as first minister, Yousaf won the 2023 SNP leadership election, defeating Kate Forbes with 52% to her 48% in the final stage. Yousaf was appointed first minister on 29 March 2023, becoming the youngest person, the first Scottish Asian, and the first Muslim to serve in office. He was sworn into the Privy Council in May 2023.^[4] In April 2024, he formed a minority government after terminating a power-sharing agreement with the Scottish Greens. After facing an imminent motion of no confidence, he announced his intention to resign as first minister and party leader on 29 April 2024.^[5][6]

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