Jamie Hepburn, the Scottish government’s minister for parliamentary business, has resigned after an altercation with former Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross. Ross accused Hepburn of assaulting him outside the parliament chamber on Wednesday, following a row over the government’s apparent failure to tackle aggressive gulls.
Ross alleged that Hepburn grabbed him by the shoulder and subjected him to verbal abuse after Ross challenged him on the issue of gull attacks in his region. Hepburn denied the assault but acknowledged using aggressive language. An unnamed MSP from another party corroborated Ross’s account, though the altercation was not caught on CCTV.
In his resignation letter, Hepburn stated that his behaviour was “quite out of character” and inappropriate. “Irrespective of whether or not the ministerial code has been breached, even if there had been no complaint made, I believe I have not acted in accordance with my own personal code of practice,” he wrote. Ross said Hepburn later apologised in person, calling the resignation the “correct decision”.
First Minister John Swinney accepted the resignation with “much personal regret”, praising Hepburn’s usual courtesy. The resignation is rare for an SNP minister over matters of honour or principle. Ross had called for Hepburn to be sacked, arguing that Swinney should have acted sooner.
