Scotland’s prime minister has been announced and according to details, Hamza Yusuf- 37, Health Minister of Scotland became first Muslim immigrant prime minister. Hamza Yusuf’s father belongs to Khanewal Tehsil Mian Chinnu and migrated from Pakistan in 1960.
According to different media reports, in chairmanship election of the Scottish National Party (SNP) which had a historic result, 37-year-old Health Minister Hamza Yusuf came first, the son of a Pakistani immigrant family, announced his candidacy for the presidency in February.
Yousaf is the first Muslim to lead a country in Western Europe.
A close Sturgeon ally, he has been considered a continuity candidate, and his victory in the SNP’s leadership vote signals that the party will not abandon its progressive policies.
He has however distanced himself from her planned route to independence, saying the party needs to get back to making the case for independence, rather than endlessly debating process.
He will also have to try to unify the party after a brutal leadership campaign that exposed divisions among the candidates over their approach to independence and social issues.
“We will be the generation that delivers independence for Scotland,” Yousaf said in Edinburgh after the result.
“Where there are divisions to heal we must do so and do so quickly because we have a job to do and as a party we are at our strongest when we are united, and what unites is our shared goal of delivering independence for our nation.”
Yousaf has said his faith is “not the basis on which I legislate” and that he supports equal marriage, following a row over the views of his main rival for the role, Kate Forbes.
He has also said he plans to challenge the UK government’s decision to block a bill passed by the Scottish parliament that makes it easier for people to change their legal gender. His progressive social views should preserve a deal with the Green Party to support the SNP government.
Born in Glasgow, the 37-year-old has a degree in politics from the University of Glasgow. After graduating he worked as an aide to a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) before being elected an MSP himself in 2011.
