Kate Forbes, who announced on Monday that she will step forward to succeed Nicola Sturgeon as leader of the Scottish National party, has called for a “reset” of the party’s independence strategy, signaling that she will reject the first minister’s current plans for a “de facto” referendum.
Asked by the BBC if he was happy to treat the next UK general election as a referendum on breaking up the union with the UK, Scotland’s finance and economy secretary said the answer was not easy.
“We need a reset in the strategy for freedom, and I think that should come through listening to people and building bridges,” she said.
Sturgeon’s authority in the pro-independence SNP was partially undermined by internal opposition to her plan to use the next UK general election as a “de facto” referendum, after the UK Supreme Court ruled late last year that she did not have the legal authority to hold a plebiscite without London’s consent. Many MPs themselves fear that turning elections into single-issue campaigns will cost them seats.
Forbes, who has been on maternity leave since the end of the summer, is the bookmakers’ favorite to replace Sturgeon, who announced her resignation last week.
His chances increased on Monday when Angus Robertson, the cabinet secretary for the constitution and another SNP heavyweight, withdrew from the contest, although Forbes will be challenged by Humza Yousaf, the health secretary, and Ash Regan, the former community safety minister.
Robertson, a former SNP group leader at Westminster, has been seen as one of the main potential candidates to succeed Sturgeon.
In a statement, Forbes said he had the “vision, experience and competence to inspire voters in Scotland” and that he was a “unifier”.
“I can’t sit back and watch our nation thwarted on the road to independence,” he added in a campaign video.
Launching her bid in Glasgow on Monday, Yousaf praised Sturgeon and was a continuity candidate, saying her “commitment to social justice is a legacy I will carry on”.
He also reaffirmed his support for abortion rights and controversial legislation intended to make it easier for people to get official recognition for gender reassignment. A top priority for Sturgeon, last month it was vetoed by Rishi Sunak, the British prime minister.
“I have lived my whole life in Scotland as a minority, often having to fight for my rights. I want there to be no doubt in anyone’s mind that I will fight to protect all our rights,” said Yousaf, who, if elected, will be the first leader of Scotland from an ethnic minority background.
Some in the SNP have questioned whether Forbes member of the Free Church of Scotland, a Christian church that holds traditional views on social issues, can imperil the ability to lead a party that Sturgeon takes an increasingly liberal stance.
In an interview with the BBC, Forbes said he could not support gender reform legislation.
In 2019, Forbes co-signed an open letter with Regan, who last year resigned from the government to vote against the gender recognition reform bill, and other SNP colleagues who were wary of making it easier to change gender.
“Changing the definition of men and women” is a “matter of great importance”, the letter said.
Meanwhile, at a prayer breakfast in 2018, Forbes said that the treatment of “unborn babies” is the “true measure of progress”.
In an Ipsos poll conducted a day after Sturgeon announced she was standing down, 31 percent of respondents said Forbes would do a good job as first minister, compared with 18 percent who said she would be a bad leader. One-third of voters said they did not know.
Meanwhile, 20 percent of respondents said Yousaf will do a good job, behind Robertson at 24 percent.
SNP members will vote to elect a new leader between March 13 and March 27.