Scottish Parliament chief to stand down at next Holyrood election
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HOLYROOD presiding officer Alison Johnstone will stand down as an MSP next year.
The former Scottish Greens politician has announced that she won't run in next May's election.
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Alison Johnstone is set to stand down as an MSP
Credit: Alamy
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She has been presiding officer at the Scottish Parliament since 2021
Credit: Alamy
Ms Johnstone took on the non-partisan presiding officer position in 2021.
Following the last Scottish Parliament election, the Lothians MSP emerged as the only candidate for the Holyrood chamber role.
She was elected with 97 votes in favour, 28 against, two abstentions and one spoiled ballot.
The job of presiding officer is equivalent to the Speaker of the House of Commons.
They are responsible for overseeing business at Holyrood and chairing meetings in the debating chamber.
Ms Johnstone, 59, said: 'I was elected in 2011 and it was always my intention that this would be my last term in Holyrood.'
She said she did not come from a political background, adding: 'I was not in a political party but campaigned for the creation of a Scottish Parliament and I then worked as an assistant for Robin Harper, the first-ever Green parliamentarian in the UK elected to the first-ever Scottish Parliament.'
Recent weeks have seen the Scottish Conservatives accuse Ms Johnstone of bias in her role, an allegation she has always denied.
At the end of May, the presiding officer took the rare decision to kick former Tory leader Douglas Ross out of the chamber due to his interjections at First Minister's Questions.
During her tenure, Ms Johnstone guided the parliament through the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, which included implementing social distancing and remote working practices.
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She was also heavily involved in the ceremony following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022, when the King visited the Scottish Parliament to hear a special motion of condolence session.
Before entering politics, she was a qualified athletics coach and previously held the east of Scotland titles for the 800m and 1,500m.
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