Aberdeen South MP Stephen Flynn has been elected as the SNP’s new leader in Westminster.
Flynn, an ally of SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, takes on the role after defeating fellow Sturgeon ally Alison Thewliss in a vote among SNP MPs.
The vote – which Flynn won by 26 votes to 17 - was triggered after Ian Blackford stood down from the role.
Flynn who had long been linked with the Westminster leader role had been expected to run unopposed to succeed Blackford. However, Thewliss – seen by many as being closer to Scotland’s first minister - put her candidacy forward amid speculation that Flynn was planning to make wholesale changes to the SNP’s Westminster frontbench.
Flynn has already confirmed that Mhairi Black has been selected as deputy Westminster leader following his election.
The new Westminster leader promised that he and his new deputy would bring a “fresh approach” that “people in Scotland will certainly buy into” and would aim to “build on the legacy” of his predecessor.
Flynn paid tribute to Blackford as a “giant of the Scottish independence movement”, as the latter now moves into a new role as business ambassador within the SNP’s campaign for independence.
Flynn said: “We have a lot to do. We have to make that positive, decisive case for Scottish independence and our democratic right to choose. But also to hold the Conservative UK government's feet to the fire on the fact that we have a cost of living crisis and people in Scotland are struggling”.
Flynn also pledged to work closely with Nicola Sturgeon, who hailed the new leadership duo as a “truly formidable team”.
However, other Scottish politicians have suggested that Scotland’s first minister would have preferred Thewliss to have been successful in the SNP Westminster leadership ballot and that all may not be as harmonious as it seems.
Craig Hoy, the chair of the Scottish Conservatives, said that it was a “personal humiliation” for Sturgeon that Thewliss had not won, and was indicative of “deep splits within the SNP”.
Hoy said: “This result is sure to lead to increased tensions between the SNP leaders at Westminster and Holyrood, not least over oil and gas policy, where Mr Flynn - a serial flip-flopper on this issue - is, for the moment, at odds with Ms Sturgeon.”
Indeed, Flynn was against imposing windfall taxes on the profits of North Sea oil and gas firms amid concerns over how this would affect jobs in the industry in Aberdeen. However, Sturgeon was an ardent backer of the policy.
Labour shadow Scottish secretary Ian Murray added that Flynn being elected was a “two-finger salute” to the first minister by her MPs.
Sturgeon has also been forced to deny that the change of Westminster leader was a “coup”, amid speculation that Blackford has been pressured to step down.
One of Flynn’s first acts as the new SNP leader in Westminster will be to scrutinise Rishi Sunak at Wednesday’s Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons.
He takes over the SNP’s Westminster group after the party’s campaign for independence suffered a bitter setback in recent weeks. This came as the Supreme Court ruled that the Scottish Parliament does not have the power to hold a second referendum on independence without the UK government’s permission.
Sturgeon now plans to fight the next general election solely on the issue of independence and intends to make it a “de facto referendum”.
