John Swinney responds to claims Humza Yousaf breached ministerial code to help family in Gaza

Scottish Conservative MSP Stephen Kerr had accused Mr Yousaf of breaking the ministerial code by using his office to lobby the UK Foreign Office for preferential treatment for his family in Gaza.

Mr Yousaf has since said he made no such demands. Now Mr Swinney, the incumbent first minister, has said it is the “duty of government” to repatriate citizens trapped in a war zone.

When asked if Mr Yousaf would be investigated, Mr Swinney said: “No. I think where we have a situation where citizens from our country are trapped in a conflict zone, the first duty of government is to get those citizens out.

“The representations Humza Yousaf made to the UK government about Gaza when he was first minister are just the same as the representations I have asked [External Affairs Secretary] Angus Robertson to make on my behalf to the UK government about Lebanon, offering our support to assist them to bring home individuals who are trapped there.

“I am satisfied that the duty of government is to work to repatriate our citizens.”

Mr Swinney said the Scottish Government would have been criticised for not making this representation to the Foreign Office. The accusations were made over the weekend after documents obtained through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request were published in The Daily Telegraph.

It has been suggested Mr Humza had a personal phone call with former UK home secretary James Cleverly to move his family “nearer the front of the queue”.

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The documents also reveal Mr Yousaf had secured a call with Lord Ahmed, the Middle East minister, just three days after the Hamas attacks. The pair discussed “the ongoing situation in Israel/Gaza, specifically with regards to his parents-in-law”.

The former first minister then exchanged WhatsApp messages and emails with officials on the matter. His in-laws, Elizabeth and Maged El-Nakla, were visiting family in Gaza when the October 7 attacks happened, leaving them trapped alongside hundreds of other Brits.

The family was eventually able to flee through the Rafah Crossing into neighbouring Egypt, where they were able to fly back home to Scotland.

Mr Kerr said: “Of course I understand the human dimension of this, but it appears that Humza Yousaf has clearly sailed right over the line in breach of the ministerial code. There are questions to answer.”

Mr Yousaf has since disputed the claims in a social media post. He said: “They can try all the smears they want, but they won’t stop me from talking about the atrocities facing the people of Gaza and 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.”

A spokesman for the Scottish Government said the claims were “completely untrue”, adding: “The former first minister consistently sought assurances that the UK government was doing everything it could to ensure the safety of all British citizens in Gaza.

“The former first minister made the permanent secretary aware of the situation with his family immediately that it arose. It was also widely and publicly known.”

A Foreign Office spokesman added: “No preferential treatment was given to the former first minister or his family. Foreign Office ministers spoke with him at the time to update him on the conflict in the Middle East.

“As part of these wider conversations, they discussed his family's personal circumstances.”