/u/model-willem and LightningMinion delivered the following statement regarding the leadership of Scottish Labour:

LightningMinion: “/u/model-willem has sadly decided to step down as the leader of Scottish Labour, and the National Executive Committee of the Labour Party has nominated me to succeed Willem as the new leader of Scottish Labour. I accepted the nomination, and look forward to leading the party once again. I’d like to thank Willem for the work he’s put into leading the party and maintaining the party’s place at the top of Scottish politics; for the work he’s put into leading the nation through the current state of global permacrisis; and for his work as Cabinet Secretary for the Environment in legislating to tackle single-use plastic waste, for more sustainable fishing practices, and for higher standards of animal welfare. Willem will remain First Minister and I will remain Cabinet Secretary for Transport until the formation of a new government following next month’s elections.

Since I am the incumbent deputy leader of Scottish Labour, the position of deputy leader is now vacant, and I hope to be able to announce the new holder of the role soon.”

model-willem: “61 days ago I stepped onto the stage as the first Scottish Labour First Minister in fifteen years, trying to make Scotland a better and more progressive and more social place. To do this we entered a Government with the Scottish Liberal Democrats, it was a major shift in Scotland, after an SNP-led Government and I’m proud to have led Scottish Labour through this great time. As people are probably aware now, I’m resigning as Leader of Scottish Labour. Scottish Labour deserves a leader that can give the party 120% and I don’t feel able to do this. It’s been an honour to serve as First Minister of Scotland after being First Minister of Wales and will continue in this role until the election. I wish my successor, u/LightningMinion the best of luck and I know that he will bring Scottish Labour to unrivalled highs.”