Kenneth Gibson elected Scottish Parliament presiding officer

Kenneth Gibson has been elected as presiding officer (PO) of the seventh session of the Scottish Parliament. 
 
Gibson was elected after three rounds of voting, winning by 74 votes to Clare Haughey’s 54. 
 
Liberal Democrat MSP Liam McArthur and the SNP’s Stuart McMillan were eliminated in the earlier voting rounds. 
 
In his first address as PO, Gibson said: “Thanks to all who voted for me through thick and thin. It has been quite a stressful afternoon.” 

He added: “I’m looking forward to working with every single person in this chamber to take this parliament forward. I think there’s so much more that we can be as a parliament, than we have been in the past, and I am certainly going to do my utmost to work with you.” 

Gibson will now sit as an independent MSP to ensure impartiality, having been a member of the SNP for over 40 years.  
 
Last month, there was cross-party criticism of the way the election of the presiding officer works, in the form of a joint-authored piece in The Scotsman by Gibson, the Conservatives’ Stephen Kerr, and Labour’s Paul Sweeney. 

They said: “That moment will expose something that is rarely said out loud but widely understood inside Holyrood. The election of the presiding officer is not a genuine contest. It is, more often than not, settled in advance.   

“Everyone inside the building knows it. We just don’t say it. Party managers talk. Deals are done. Names are tested. A candidate emerges who is acceptable across the parties. By the time MSPs are asked to vote, the outcome has effectively been stitched up. 

“It is presented as a choice. It is nothing of the kind. And this time, the flaw will be even more obvious.” 

Yesterday, at the presiding officer hustings, Gibson said he would bring about a formal election period for the role. He also said he would discuss with all the parties how they should ensure representation for all the parties at First Minister’s Questions. 

Gibson will now chair the election of the two deputy presiding officers. 

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