Humza Yousaf: 'Like a leader created by ChatGPT'

Bute House, the official home of Scotland's first minister, where Humza Yousaf will take up residence. Photo: Kim Traynor. CC BY-SA 3.0

It’s striking how muted the response has been to Humza Yousaf’s ascent to Scotland’s highest office. He’s the first Muslim and the first ethnic Pakistani to take charge of a western European semi-autonomous democracy. That should count for something. At the very least, Mr Yousaf’s rise to the top of Scottish politics should have spawned a hundred different stories a la the October 2022 media froth when Rishi Sunak became UK prime minister.

But it’s all been very measured. I’m trying to work out why.

Is it because Mr Yousaf’s words and deeds won’t ever matter in the same way as Mr Sunak on account of Scotland’s very different status as a constituent part of the United Kingdom?

Is it because he is so much an establishment man, albeit Scottish National Party (SNP) establishment, and everyone already knows what Mr Yousaf will say or do?

Or is it because the ro…