'Outrageous!' Humza Yousaf blasted over 'SNP propaganda papers' after Nicola Sturgeon exit

Humza Yousaf

Downloads of Scottish independence papers published by the SNP government have slumped since Humza Yousaf took over from Nicola Sturgeon.

Twelve reports have been released as part of the Building a New Scotland Series, which is aimed at giving Scots an “informed choice” about the future.

Figures obtained under Freedom of Information laws show the first paper, which was published in June 2022, attracted 78,571 views as of March 25.

The second paper had an audience of 25,945 while the third gathered 81,925.

But downloads have reduced since Mr Yousaf took over as Scottish First Minister and SNP leader in March last year.

One report on marine life attracted the lowest number with just 1,295, while the eleventh paper on an independent Scotland’s place in the world racked up just 3,168 views.

There were more than 186,000 downloads for the three papers when Ms Sturgeon was Scotland’s First Minister, compared to less than 90,000 for eight published under Mr Yousaf. Figures were not provided for the most recent dossier on education.

Tory MSP Meghan Gallacher told the Daily Record: “It is outrageous that hard-pressed Scots are still expected to foot the bill for these SNP propaganda papers which hardly anyone reads.

“Scots are sick and tired of SNP ministers frittering away taxpayer’s cash and civil servants’ time on pushing a divisive, party-political agenda.

“It’s high time that the SNP focused instead on the public’s real priorities, like fixing our ailing public services and economic growth.”

Pamela Nash, chief executive of Scotland in Union, added: “These dismal and declining download figures show that the people of Scotland aren’t interested in the SNP’s negative campaign to divide us.

“This anti-UK propaganda, full of baseless assertions, has cost the taxpayer millions of pounds, wasting civil service resources.

“Scotland deserves politicians who put the people’s priorities first and focus on what really matters – creating jobs, fixing the NHS emergency, and driving up standards in schools.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government was elected with a clear mandate to provide the people of Scotland with the information they need to make an informed choice about their future across a range of topics, and there continues to be strong public interest in these papers, which is evident in the media coverage surrounding their publication and engagement on social media.”