First Minister John Swinney will not order an investigation into his predecessor’s conduct when his parents-in-law were trapped in Gaza.
Senior Tory MSP Stephen Kerr called for the probe on Monday after reports emerged claiming Humza Yousaf lobbied the UK Government to help Elizabeth and Maged El-Nakla – his wife’s parents – escape from the territory.
The couple had been visiting family in the region when Hamas launched their attack on Israel on October 7, prompting long-running Israeli reprisals, with concerns a wider war in the Middle East could be sparked.
But speaking to the PA news agency in Perth on Monday, the First Minister said he would not order an investigation into Mr Yousaf, describing the former first minister’s actions as the “normal routine business of government”.
“I think what’s important is to focus on the central point in this whole story, which is about the fact that we had citizens from this country who were trapped in Gaza, in an awful conflict and they had to be supported to be brought home,” he said.
Asked specifically if he would order a probe under the ministerial code, Mr Swinney said: “I have no intention of doing so.”
The First Minister likened the actions of Mr Yousaf to that of his own government in response to the ongoing hostilities in Lebanon.
“We have been in touch with the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) on that question about Lebanon, as members of the public would expect me to be, as they would expect my predecessor to be in touch on the Gaza situation,” he said.
“So this is the normal routine business of government, where your citizens are held in a difficult situation of conflict that you do your best to get them out.”
The former first minister has also tersely rejected the accusations of wrongdoing, saying on X, formerly Twitter: “They can try all the smears they want, but they won’t stop me from talking about the atrocities facing the people of Gaza & Lebanon.
“As the FOIs show, not a single request was ever made by me for preferential treatment for my in-laws. They left alongside other British nationals.”
Speaking to The Sunday Telegraph newspaper, Mr Kerr, who served on the Scottish Parliament’s Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee until earlier this year, said, while Mr Yousaf’s “motives” should not be questioned, “we have every right to question his methods”.
