Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone to step down

Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone will stand down as an MSP at next year's election, it has been confirmed.

Johnstone, a Lothians MSP, has been an MSP since 2011 and PO since 2021.

A former co-leader of the Scottish Greens, she gave up the party whip on taking up the non-partisan role, but is now to leave frontline politics.

During her tenure, Johnstone has overseen the introduction of new rules to deal with disruptive protests in the public gallery.

She has was also in place during the Covid pandemic, and for the deaths of the Queen and key political figures Alex Salmond and Christina McKelvie.

In recent weeks she removed former Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross from the chamber for heckling, a move that saw him question her neutrality.

Johnstone told The Times: "I was elected in 2011 and it was always my intention that this would be my last term in Holyrood."