Image source, PA Media

SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn is backing John Swinney for first minister.

Flynn is seen as a very influential member of the party.

His name was considered among the possible leadership contenders, but he has ruled himself out to back Swinney.

Flynn has has also said Humza Yousaf served Scotland with "integrity, compassion and commitment" during his tenure.

"The challenges he has faced have been huge, yet at every turn he has led from the front," he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, external.

"There can be no doubt that he has now laid the groundwork required to take our country forward. I wish him well," Flynn adds.

As we reported earlier, former First Minister Alex Salmond has claimed Humza Yousaf wanted to do a deal with his Alba Party before announcing he was resigning.

Salmond tells BBC Radio 4's World at One programme Yousaf had phoned Alba at about 07:30 BST this morning to say that the Alba plans were rational.

He says: "The idea that (Humza Yousaf) didn't want to do a deal with Alba is simply untrue."

So what happens next at Holyrood?published at 16:03 British Summer Time 29 April

16:03 BST 29 April

Kirsten Campbell
BBC Scotland political correspondent

It’s a fast-changing situation with a lot of moving parts.

But a snap Scottish Parliament election is now looking less likely.

Humza Yousaf has signalled his intention to resign as first minister, but he hasn’t yet done so formally.

So the 28-day countdown for getting a new first minister has not yet started.

He intends to stay in post until his successor as SNP leader is elected, much as Nicola Sturgeon did.

The votes of no confidence in him and his government, tabled by the Conservatives and Labour, look likely to go ahead to allow MSPs to give their verdict on his time in power.

But his decision to stand down has lanced the festering boil of the Greens’ fury and they won’t now back those motions.

This means the no confidence votes are unlikely to pass, buying the SNP more time to sort itself out.

The party has still to set out what the timetable for a leadership election will be.

There’s clearly hope in some quarters that a contest can be avoided, while others warn against a coronation.

Kate Forbes is being encouraged to stand again.

But many senior politicians are swinging in behind John Swinney, who is viewed as a safe pair of hands to see the SNP through this turbulent time.

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Jenny Gilruth had been touted as a potential future SNP leader but is now backing John Swinney.

Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, the education secretary says Swinney would be the "best choice" for a new first , externalminister to replace Humza Yousaf.

"I will be strongly supporting him if, as I hope, he chooses to run," she writes.

Ian Blackford, the SNP's former leader at Westminster, has already said he would support Swinney.

Swinney v Forbes could be a fascinating watchpublished at 15:52 British Summer Time 29 April

15:52 BST 29 April

Andrew Kerr
reporting from Holyrood

In his resignation speech, Humza Yousaf said politics can be a "brutal business".

No sooner had he finished his press conference and the door in the Bute House drawing room had closed, than the speculation about his replacement ratcheted up.

In fact, there had been discussion over the weekend about the possible runners and riders.

Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth and Health Secretary Neil Gray were being spoken of as possible replacements.

But John Swinney is a big political animal and his appearance on the scene means younger, ambitious colleagues move in behind him.

I understand that Gray would back a Swinney leadership campaign and Gilruth has now also said she would.

Swinney, the former deputy first minister, has served in numerous government roles and is vastly experienced.

He seemed to relish his time away from political office and spending more time with his family.

But there seems to be a call to serve and he's now giving that careful consideration.

Supporters of Kate Forbes - a close second to Yousaf in last year's leadership contest - are suspicious.

They think this is the SNP "old guard" leading an "Anyone But Kate" campaign.

Forbes' backers, who hope she will have a shot, say she is now giving it "active consideration".

A Swinney v Forbes campaign would be fascinating to watch - but, whoever the winner, it could leave the party hopelessly divided.

Christopher Sleight
BBC Scotland News

The Scottish Parliament is 25 years old this year and has so far had six first ministers.

Scottish Labour provided the first three - Donald Dewar (1999 to 2000), Henry McLeish (2000 to 2001) and Jack McConnell (2001 to 2007) and the Scottish National Party the next three, Alex Salmond (2007 to 2014), Nicola Sturgeon (2014 to 2023) and Humza Yousaf (2023 to 2024).

The longest serving has been Nicola Sturgeon and the shortest stint was that of Henry McLeish.

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Humza Yousaf's resignation makes his tenure as Scotland's first minister the second shortest since the office was established in 1999.

In that time there have been, not including caretakers, six first ministers - three from the Labour Party and three from the Scottish National Party.

Yousaf formally took office one year and one month ago, on 29 March 2023.

He succeeded Nicola Sturgeon, whose stint of eight years and 128 days in the job makes her Scotland's longest-serving first minister.

Yousaf narrowly misses out on becoming Scotland's shortest-serving first minister by just 20 days.

In 2001, Labour's Henry McLeish resigned after one year and 12 days following an expenses scandal surrounding his office.

Depending on how long the SNP leadership contest to replace him takes, Yousaf could also surpass Donald Dewar's tenure in office. Scotland's first minister served for one year and 147 days, and died in office.

If you're just joining us, this is the moment just after 12:00 BST when Humza Yousaf announced his resignation just 13 months after being appointed as Scotland's first minister.

Yousaf has said he made the decision to stand down after spending the weekend reflecting on what was best for the SNP, the government and the country.

Kate Forbes supporters fear a Swinney stitch-uppublished at 15:13 British Summer Time 29 April

15:13 BST 29 April

Andrew Kerr
Scottish political correspondent live at Holyrood

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All eyes are on Kate Forbes at the moment - one of the contenders Humza Yousaf previously defeated in the SNP leadership race.

She has just posted on social media, external a warm tribute to her former rival - saying that Yousaf is "an honourable man, who displayed dignity and humility today".

Forbes is keeping her powder dry for the moment but there is feverish speculation that she might fancy running again.

Writing in a newspaper a couple of days ago, she highlighted the three qualities that people in the SNP "understand".

They are: leadership, loyalty and humility.

Her supporters are hungry for her leadership.

One told me that they have "not had clarity" from her yet but they were "pretty sure she was up for it".

With the former Deputy First Minister John Swinney saying he will give "very careful consideration" to standing to be leader, Forbes' supporters are anxious that there is no "stitch-up".

They are vehemently against an "Anyone But Kate" campaign which they suspect is being co-ordinated by what is being called the "SNP old guard".

They feel Kate Forbes could appeal beyond the SNP - not only across the chamber at Holyrood in minority government - but out in the real world too.

As we reported earlier, the SNP's former leader at Westminster Ian Blackford has paid tribute to Humza Yousaf and said he is "so sad" to see him resign.

Blackford is also one of the first SNP bigwigs to publicly give his backing to John Swinney as the next SNP leader and first minister.

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If you're just joining us this afternoon, here's a recap of the key developments so far on this monumental day in Scottish politics:

• Humza Yousaf has resigned as Scotland's first minister and leader of the SNP
• Yousaf says he will stay on as first minister until the Scottish National Party chooses his replacement
• He admits to having "clearly underestimated" the hurt he'd caused the Scottish Greens by ending the SNP's power-sharing deal with them in the way he did
• Yousaf has said he'd concluded that "repairing the relationship across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm"
• The SNP leader was facing two votes of no confidence later this week and said in his speech that it's "absolutely possible" he could have won by cutting a deal
• Yousaf has told reporters he wasn't willing to trade his principles just to hold on to power
• He became visibly emotional as he paid tribute to his wife and children
• It is not clear who is likely to replace Yousaf - but they will be the seventh person to hold the post of first minister since the Scottish Parliament was established in 1999
• Former SNP leader John Swinney, who served as deputy first minister to Nicola Sturgeon, has already said he is actively considering standing

Read more here.

Following on from Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, the boss of his party in Scotland, Anas Sarwar, has thanked Humza Yousaf for his public service as first minister and praised the "dignified way" he carried himself when he was worried about his loved ones in Gaza.

Sarwar says his party's opposition has never been about one person but "it's about a dysfunctional party, a chaotic government and 17 years of SNP failure".

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We've been hearing from political figures since Humza Yousaf's announcement to step down as Scotland's first minister.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer is now weighing in on the situation, saying "all the SNP can offer is chaos".

"I despair at the situation in Scotland," he says.

"We've got to turn the page on this now. We need that general election and a fresh start," the Labour leader adds.

The Greens would look kindly on John Swinneypublished at 14:39 British Summer Time 29 April

14:39 BST 29 April

David Wallace Lockhart
Political correspondent

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A big question for whoever takes over the SNP is how do they pass legislation and budgets etc without a majority in parliament.

The impression I get is that the Scottish Greens would look quite kindly on John Swinney taking over, potentially paving a route to a relationship that could work.

This might not be a formal deal like the Bute House Agreement but it could help government function.

The Greens have made it clear they’re unlikely to work with Kate Forbes.

So if she becomes leader, she may have to look to other parties for support on an issue by issue basis.

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The leader of the Alba party, Alex Salmond, has told BBC Radio 4's World at One that outgoing SNP leader Humza Yousaf thought his party's proposals to move towards Scottish independence were "entirely reasonable".

"The idea that (Humza Yousaf) didn't want to do a deal with Alba is simply untrue," former SNP First Minister Salmond says, adding that Yousaf had phoned Alba at about 07:30 BST this morning to say that the Alba plans were rational.

Salmond says his party's sole MSP, Ash Regan, was simply waiting for a meeting with Yousaf.

Salmond has also said that the reason the outgoing first minister didn't do a deal with the pro-independence Alba party was because "forces within his own party were stopping him".

"The problem for Humza Yousaf was that he wasn't in control of his own party," Salmond adds.

On Sunday, Salmond said serious consideration should be given to a plan put forward by Alba for a referendum to be held on whether the Scottish Parliament should have the power to legislate for and conduct another independence vote.

His party is also seeking a convention of pro-independence parties.

Image source, Jane Barlow/PA Wire

In contrast to the Scottish Greens, the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats says he will continue to back a motion of no confidence against the Scottish government, if Scottish Labour pursue it.

Speaking on BBC Radio Scotland's Lunchtime Live, Alex Cole-Hamilton says: "If Labour choose to press that confidence vote in the government, then we will continue to support it."

The MSP thanks Humza Yousaf for his service but thinks his resignation “hurls the SNP further towards the end”.

Cole-Hamilton says Holyrood needs to ask the Scottish public for "new instructions" as he continues calls for an election.

"I think the public are tired of the psychodramas, the scandals and the political intrigue that we have seen bedevilling the last year of Humza’s administration," he adds.

David Wallace Lockhart
Political correspondent

The Scottish Greens will now not support a motion of no confidence in Humza Yousaf as first minister this week.

The party is satisfied now that he has announced his resignation.

They will also not support a legally-binding no confidence motion in the Scottish government expected to be tabled by Labour.

Who do Westminster's SNP group want as Yousaf's successor?published at 14:17 British Summer Time 29 April

14:17 BST 29 April

Georgia Roberts
BBC Scotland political correspondent

Now that Humza Yousaf has announced his resignation as Scotland's first minister, the talk is swiftly moving to his replacement. Not just in Edinburgh, but Westminster too.

After all, it’s MPs who are currently facing the most immediate prospect of an election - although that could change if MSPs can’t approve a replacement in Holyrood.

The SNP's status as Westminster’s third biggest party is under threat by a resurgent Labour Party and whoever sits in the top chair in Edinburgh will have a significant impact on the success of their campaign.

One senior SNP figure down here in Westminster says former Deputy First Minister John Swinney is the man who the majority of the Westminster group want to get behind; not as an interim leader, as some have suggested, but permanently.

Ian Blackford, the SNP's former Westminster leader, says he’s backing Swinney.

But it’s early days as horse trading gets under way – and we’ve still yet to hear from the heavily-influential SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn.

The opposition, of course, is sceptical.

“Whoever takes over, there’s no confidence in the (SNP) government full stop,” says one MP.

However, the SNP's Joanna Cherry has indicated she’s backing Kate Forbes: “continuity would not cut it” she writes on X, formerly know as Twitte, externalr.

Former Deputy First Minister John Swinney has confirmed he is considering standing as Humza Yousaf's replacement.

The 60-year-old says: "I'm giving very careful consideration to standing to be the leader of the SNP.

"I've been somewhat overwhelmed by the requests that have been made for me to do that," he adds.

Swinney has been a major player in the SNP ever since the Scottish parliament was restored in 1999 and was party leader from 2000 to 2004. He was always likely to be seen as a potential frontrunner in a leadership contest.

As well as the post of deputy first minister, he has also held cabinet portfolios that include finance and education.

He left office at the same time as former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who he was seen as being a close ally of, in March 2023. He has not held a post since but continues to represent Perthshire North.

It’s been a dramatic 12 days in Scottish politics.

It began with the SNP's decision to scrap a key climate change target - which led to the Scottish Greens being kicked out of government - and ended with the first minister quitting his job.

Take a look back at some of the key moments which led to Humza Yousaf’s resignation: