Image source, PA Media

Michael Matheson’s departure from the government's health portfolio meant he was not in Holyrood to announce that Scotland is raising the minimum unit price for alcohol.

Instead, it was left to deputy FM Shona Robison to confirm a few minutes ago that the price per unit will increase from 50p to 65p from 30 September.

The legislation, first introduced in May 2018, was due to expire at the end of April thanks to a “sunset clause”.

However, a 30% rise backed by alcohol charities as a way of curbing deaths due to related health problems was confirmed on Thursday.

Groups representing the retail and alcohol sectors have both opposed the charge, claiming it has limited effect in reducing harm.

Who will be the next health secretary?published at 14:39 Greenwich Mean Time 8 February

14:39 GMT 8 February

Andrew Kerr
Scottish political correspondent

The first minister was already considering ministerial changes ahead of Michael Matheson's resignation.

The Drug and Alcohol Policy Minister Elena Whitham stepped down from the Scottish government this week for health reasons.

Humza Yousaf was looking for a replacement and the former minister Ben Macpherson is a possibility for the role.

It’s a big job – with a huge amount of scrutiny on Scotland’s drug deaths.

Whitham had received praise for her work but there’s concern now about the growing use of benzodiazepines so there’s a lot to do in this area.

Health is a huge responsibility and gets the lion’s share of the Scottish government's budget.

It’s clear from the way that Yousaf handled the Matheson affair that he values loyalty – almost any cost.

A loyal lieutenant is the Wellbeing Economy Secretary Neil Gray.

He’s a capable and energetic figure. His nickname for the first minister is “Boss”.

Gray is a very likely candidate for health – but who then goes to the economy brief?

Talk of a return for Yousaf's former leadership rival Kate Forbes is probably just that - talk.

She was back in the newspapers at the weekend criticising tax policy – and I’ve just said that Yousaf values loyalty.

The reshuffle should be taking place early this afternoon.

SNP MSPs will be standing by their phones.

David Wallace Lockhart
Political correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

Wellbeing Economy Secretary Neil Gray is among the first to arrive for Humza Yousaf’s reshuffle at St Andrew's House.

He doesn’t answer when asked if he’s the new health secretary, but says he wants to serve the people of Scotland.

Image source, PA Media

In a letter, first minister Humza Yousaf accepted Matheson's resignation with "sadness" and paid tribute to his "distinguished career" in government.

He added: "You have given your country tremendous service in government and I know that you will continue to represent the people of Falkirk West with that same energy and dedication."

Matheson's resignation dominated a lively discussion during First Minister's Questions.

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said: "Michael Matheson was dishonest about his £11,000 iPad bill. He made a false claim for thousands of pounds of taxpayer money. He misled the public, the press and this parliament. He's resigned but Humza Yousaf should have sacked him the minute - the minute - it became clear that Michael Matheson had not told the truth.

"In this lengthy letter from the former health secretary, there is not one word of apology to the people of Scotland for what he did."

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar says while the former health secretary's resignation will make the headlines today, problems in the NHS have been 17 years in the making.

He said: "Humza Yousaf may hope swapping one failing SNP minister for another is going to solve the problems, but it won't."

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said patients "deserve better than an SNP minister who has lost their trust and could no longer focus on the day job".

He added: "From Humza Yousaf to Michael Matheson, our NHS has known only crisis, soaring vacancies and even longer waits."

Has loyalty to a valued colleague damaged trust in Yousaf's government?published at 14:11 Greenwich Mean Time 8 February

14:11 GMT 8 February

Kirsten Campbell
BBC Scotland political correspondent

The news of Michael Matheson's resignation has stunned Holyrood with many questioning, why now and why not earlier?

At least two government ministers learned the health secretary had quit from chance encounters with BBC journalists, rather than through official channels.

For most political watchers there was an inevitability that this would be the eventual outcome, even some government insiders admitted it was unavoidable.

But many are scratching their heads about why Matheson has come to this conclusion several months after everybody else, if he hasn't yet seen the findings of a review of his expenses handling.

The decision leaves the first minister's judgement open to question. Has his loyalty to a valued colleague damaged public trust in his government?

Has this lanced the boil?published at 14:02 Greenwich Mean Time 8 February

14:02 GMT 8 February

Andrew Kerr
Scottish political correspondent

Michael Matheson's sudden departure meant Humza Yousaf had an awkward First Minister's Questions.

The health secretary quit just an hour before the weekly session - but in some ways it could be seen to have "lanced the boil" with Yousaf answering questions and for him, at least, attempting to draw a line under the affair.

It will have caused chaos at St Andrew's House, the Scottish government HQ.

Matheson was due to give MSPs an update on minimum unit pricing for alcohol early this afternoon.

The deputy first minister has been scrambled to do that.

Shona Robison will be across the issue - but it's a complicated one with the Conservatives questioning evidence on the policy's effectiveness.

It means she will have had just three hours to get briefed before standing up in the chamber.

Civil servants will have been updating her in a last-minute cramming session.

One civil servant said to me, ruefully, it had been a "busy" day. That's the half of it.

If you're just joining us, it's been an extremely busy day in the world of Scottish politics.

Michael Matheson has resigned as health secretary ahead of a report into an £11,000 bill that was racked up on his parliamentary iPad.

The iPad charges, initially paid out of the public purse, were incurred during a family trip to Morocco in late 2022.

When details of the bill were first made public, he said the device had only been used for parliamentary work.

He later admitted that his sons had used the iPad as a data hotspot so they could watch football and has since paid back the bill in full and apologised.

Humza Yousaf, who had backed Matheson throughout, said in accepting his resignation that he was "a man of integrity".

The resignation led to rowdy skirmishes between the first minister and Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross at FMQs.

It is expected that Matheson's replacement will be announced later this afternoon.

Why let this saga run on for months?published at 13:49 Greenwich Mean Time 8 February

13:49 GMT 8 February

David Wallace Lockhart
Political correspondent

What’s striking is how many Scottish government/SNP figures seem to think Michael Matheson’s resignation was inevitable.

They’re entirely unsurprised things have ended this way.

Which begs the question: why let it run on for months? Remember, this iPad bill emerged last November.

And this is the context in which opposition parties are trying to make this all about Humza Yousaf’s judgement.

The resignation of Michael Matheson dominated FMQs and it casts a dark shadow over the government's business this afternoon.

Matheson had been due to give a ministerial statement on minimum unit pricing of alcohol at 14:25.

We understand Deputy First Minister Shona Robison will step into the breach.

She will then have to lead the Stage 1 Budget Bill debate, so an extremely busy afternoon awaits.

Will Yousaf regret standing by 'man of integrity' Matheson?published at 13:35 Greenwich Mean Time 8 February

13:35 GMT 8 February

David Henderson
Political correspondent

Michael Matheson says he's stepping down to ensure "this does not become a distraction to taking forward the government's agenda."

It's a little late for that.

After all, the health secretary was at the centre of a feeding frenzy for weeks over his £11,000 roaming bill.

The full story only emerged over time, as he back-peddled and tried to tough it out.

First he paid back the money he'd initially claimed from the Parliamentary authorities.

Then came an emotional apology to Parliament, and the admission his teenage sons had run up the data bill.

So will Humza Yousaf regret standing by Michael Matheson for all these months?

The FM called him "a man of integrity, honesty".

He may regret using precious political capital to defend a colleague who's now chosen to resign.

Should he have realised Mr Matheson's position was untenable at a much earlier stage?

Michael Matheson's resignation this morning caught many people on the back foot - including his cabinet colleague Jamie Hepburn.

The Scottish government's independence minister had the news broken to him by BBC Scotland News at Holyrood.

And he wasn't faking his surprise!

The only surprise about Matheson quitting is that it took so longpublished at 13:21 Greenwich Mean Time 8 February

13:21 GMT 8 February

Glenn Campbell
BBC Scotland Political Editor

Humza Yousaf has just lost one of his most experienced, capable and loyal ministers. That is a setback to him and the Scottish government.

That Michael Matheson would have to resign at some point, having deliberately concealed the truth behind his massive iPad bill, has long seemed likely.

If anything, the surprise has been how long the minister has been able to continue in office, with his boss's backing.

Officially, they have been waiting for the "due process" of an investigation by the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body.

Its report has yet to be published and Mr Matheson claims in his resignation letter not to have seen the findings but decided to quit anyway to avoid it distracting from government business.

His letter also notes that the NHS requires "major reform" to remain sustainable. That is a massive item of government business that will now be for Mr Matheson's successor to address.

Before FMQ's, we were bringing you the latest on the resignation of former health secretary Michael Matheson.

It follows a row over an £11,000 iPad bill, accrued in data charges while he was abroad with his family in 2022. A report by the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body is due to be published regarding the charges which were initially paid out of the public purse.

In his resignation statement to the first minister today, Matheson said he was standing down because he did not want the outcome of the report to become a "distraction to taking forward the government's agenda".

Accepting his resignation, first minister Humza Yousaf wrote that Matheson had given "tremendous service in government" to his country - including securing a pay agreement with junior doctors and averting strike action within Scotland's NHS.

During FMQ's, Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross pointed out the lack of apology in Matheson's resignation to the Scottish people and asked the first minister whether he regretted advocating for him as a "man of integrity and honesty".

Also during FMQ's, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said Scotland doesn't just need a change of health secretary, but a change from a "failing incompetent SNP government".

We will continue to bring you the latest news on Michael Matheson's resignation.

• Who is Scotland's iPad row minister Michael Matheson?
• Parliament to investigate Michael Matheson's £11k iPad bill
• Michael Matheson: The minister, the iPad and the £11k roaming bill

FMQs draws to a close. If you're just joining us, it was a rowdy question and answer session, with the resignation of Health Secretary Michael Matheson not surprisingly dominating proceedings.

• Humza Yousaf was forced to defend Matheson from the outset
• Douglas Ross asked if the FM regretted standing by Matheson and called on Yousaf to apologise
• Yousaf conceded Matheson had made a "mistake" but "due process" had to be followed
• The Scottish Tory leader says Yousaf should have sacked his health secretary
• The FM turned on Rishi Sunak saying his performance at PMQs yesterday was a "disgrace"
• Anas Sarwar began by referring to Matheson's resignation making the headlines today, but "the crisis in our NHS has been 17 years in the making"
• The Scottish Labour leader asked about how many people had called an ambulance last year but died on the way to hospital
• The FM insisted "We are ensuring additional resources to the ambulance service'"
• 150,000 women who missed out on cervical screening have been failed by the government, insisted Sarwar
• The Covid pandemic has created "really significant challenges" said Yousaf
• "It's not just a change of a health secretary we need, it's a change from this failing, incompetent SNP government," Sarwar insisted
• The first minister said the NHS in Scotland had seen record staffing and the best paid staff anywhere in the UK

Image source, PA Media

Ruth Maguire says the Children (care and justice) (Scotland) Bill will play an important part in The Promise and as parliament moves forward to improve the bill at stage three.

She asks whether the first minister would agree it is crucial that the rights of all children are protected - whether they are in direct contact with the system as witnesses, victims or perpetrators or impacted by a family member.

The first minister says he absolutely agrees and is proud Scotland became the first nation in the UK to incorporate the United Nations convention on the rights of a child (UNCRC) into domestic law.

He adds: "Action to improve the experiences of child victims and their families is an absolute top priority, I'm sure for all of us, and particularly for this government."

He says engagement with stakeholders like Victim Support Scotland has helped to inform the bill, which completed stage two on Wednesday.

Labour's Monica Lennon asks for an update on the Scottish government's implementation of "The Promise" to care-experienced people.

It follows a report from Who Cares Scotland that the policy is not being kept four years after being launched by Nicola Sturgeon.

Lennon says the report showed "major areas of concern" around the loss of school days, with care-experienced children missing 1.3 million days due to exclusion.

But not all councils were able to provide data.

The FM says the government is "carefully considering" the findings of the report.

He says they are "determined to drive forward the transformational change" to make Scotland the best place in the world to grow up.

He adds that figures show a fall in the number of "looked-after children" between July 2020 and 2022.

The FM says "a raft of work" is going on to reduce school exclusions.

Tory MSP Craig Hoy asks for the Scottish government’s response to the Scottish Information Commissioner’s intervention into its use and retention of informal communications, in light of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry.

"The government is committed to complying with all of its legal obligations in relation to FOI, records management, legislation ," replies Yousaf.

The first minister says his government will co-operate fully with the Scottish Information Commissioner.

He refers to the externally-led independent review of mobile messaging apps and non-corporate technology.

The deputy first minister has written to the UK government, the Welsh government and the new Northern Irish executive inviting them to participate in the review, adds Yousaf.

Hoy tells the chamber SNP deputy leader Keith Brown last year said "the SNP were the most transparent party in Scotland" which elicits laughter from his fellow Tory MSP.

Jackie Baillie points to a report from Washington University that found those who have had Covid-19 have increased risks of heart failure, heart attack and stroke regardless of age.

She asks the first minister for an update on the progress of ensuring consistent collection of long Covid data, one of the report's recommendations.

The first minister says the Scottish health survey provides annual monitoring of the prevalence of long Covid on the population, including questions on self-reported Covid and impact on day-to-day activities.

The latest Scottish health survey for 2022 was published on 5 December 2023.

The first minister says: "We should seek to see what more we can do to improve that data collection as per the committee report."

Image source, Getty Images

SNP MSP Jim Fairlie asks for an update on what progress the Scottish government has made towards implementing the recommendations of the Covid-19 Recovery Committee’s report.

The FM says resources had been published on an NHS learning platform to improve staff's knowledge of the condition.

The University of Leeds has been commissioned to support an evaluation of long Covid services in Scotland.

Funding of £3m has been made available to support NHS boards to support services treating those with the condition. Yousaf says.

Tory MSP Sandesh Gulhane follows up, claiming a video posted on X by the Scottish government "downplays" the impact of long Covid and "disregards treatment for long Covid management".

He says charities have urged the retraction of the video and an apology.

The FM says the video was created with the input of medical professionals and those experiencing the condition.

He says the government will "take on board" comments from anyone living with long Covid.

Back to Anas Sarwar, who says he is "gobsmacked" by the first minister's "outrageous" answer on NHS waiting times, adding that three women have died waiting for review.

He says these women and too many people who need the NHS are being failed by an "incompetent" SNP government.

The Scottish Labour leader adds that the Scottish government would rather continue with their culture of secrecy than learn lessons from their failures.

He says: "Isn't it the case that its not just a change of a health secretary we need, its a change from this failing, incompetent SNP government."

The first minister says Sarwar completely mischaracterised what he said.

He adds that under his government's stewardship, the NHS has seen record staffing, the best paid staff anywhere in the UK.

He says: "We are making a dent into those longest waits in terms of those impacted by the global pandemic. What doesn't help our recovery is those devastating cuts to the budget from the Conservatives.

"What would be really helpful is if Anas Sarwar was able to confirm that UK Labour - if they do form the next UK government - would reverse those Tory cuts."