It’s funds day within the Scottish parliament and the Scottish finance secretary has simply resigned. Derek Mackay has give up his position as fin
It’s funds day within the Scottish parliament and the Scottish finance secretary has simply resigned. Derek Mackay has give up his position as finance secretary hours earlier than he was on account of ship his funds following a narrative printed within the Scottish Sun alleging he despatched inappropriate messages to a 16-year-old boy on social media.
The paper printed an inventory of messages Mackay had allegedly despatched to the boy since contacting the person ‘out of the blue’ in August of final 12 months. The messages printed embrace Mackay, 42, seemingly telling {the teenager} he was ‘cute’, that he was ‘wanting good with new haircut’ and alluring him to a dinner.
In response to the story, Mackay, a number one SNP politician who had even been tipped as a possible successor to Nicola Sturgeon, launched the next assertion:
‘I take full accountability for my actions. I’ve behaved foolishly and I’m really sorry. I apologise unreservedly to the person concerned and his household.
I spoke final night time with the primary minister and tendered my resignation with speedy impact. Serving in authorities has been an enormous privilege and I’m sorry to have let colleagues and supporters down.’
So what does this imply for the SNP? That is akin to a chancellor having to resign on funds day. Taking his place in delivering the Scottish authorities’s draft funds for 2020/21 in the present day is Mackay’s deputy Kate Forbes. Sturgeon has launched a brief assertion saying that Mackay made a ‘vital’ contribution to authorities however that she had accepted his resignation. Additional questions over how this example got here to come up in her authorities will undoubtedly comply with.