Ian Blackford makes humiliating apology to Greens on live TV in desperate bid to save SNP
The former SNP Westminster leader voiced contrition this morning, but was immediately slapped down by the Greens' co-leader.
Ian Blackford apologises to the Greens
Top SNP MP Ian Blackford made a desperate apology to the Scottish Greens this morning, as Humza Yousaf continues battling for his political life ahead of this weeks’ vote of no confidence.
Mr Blackford, the party’s former Westminster leader, made an appeal to his party’s scorned coalition partner after they came out in favour of forcing Mr Yousaf out as First Minister of Scotland.
Mr Blackford told Laura Kuenssberg: “I want to, this morning, appeal to our friends, or colleagues, in the Green Party to recognise where we are”.
“We are colleagues together in arguing for independence, we pushed through legislation where there has been mutual support… I would ask them to think very carefully ahead of this week of the values that we both have and make sure we can deliver that stable Government supporting the Fist Minister.
“I apologise for what has happened this week, it could have happened in a different way but we are where we are.”
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This week Mr Yousaf jettisoned his Green coalition partners, arguing that the stability originally intended by the coalition was no longer working.
However the Greens fired back that the SNP chief is ‘weak and hopeless’, accusing him of betraying voters.
With the hard left party now backing the vote of no confidence in the First Minister, the showdown is set to be a knife-edge result.
The SNP has 63 MSPs, while the Tories, Labour, LibDems and Greens have 64.
It means the result of Thursday’s vote is entirely in the hands of the Alba Party, led by Alex Salmond, and its sole MSP Ash Regan.
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Reaching to Mr Blackford’s apology, Green co-leader Lorna Slater slapped down the SNP’s attempt to win their support back.
Ms Slater accused Mr Yousaf of losing their confidence and their trust.
She added that opposing Mr Yousaf is now a “red line” for the party, and they will not vote for him under any circumstances.
“What we have said is the Scottish Green group will vote in support of the vote of no confidence against Humza Yousaf, and I cannot imagine anything at this point that could change that position.
“This was a spectacular breach of trust, from going on Tuesday to saying the Bute House Agreement was ‘worth its weight in gold’ to stopping it on Thursday. That’s broken.”
Asked whether Mr Yousaf could offer anything to the Greens to get them to change their mind, Ms Slator said: “That is not what we’re looking at just now”.
“[Our coalition] was based on mutual trust and respect, and I do have trust and respect for many of my SNP colleagues but Humza Yousaf himself has broken that and he needs to face the consequences.”
