Jeane Freeman has announced her decision to stand down at the next Scottish elections.
The SNP health secretary won’t stand for re-election to Holyrood in 2021.
Posting a statement explaining her decision on Twitter, the 66-year-old MSP for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley, said: “I have informed my local Constituency Association tonight that I will not be seeking re-selection for the next Scottish Parliament election in May 2021.”
She said: “It has been a real privilege and pleasure to represent the Ayrshire I grew up in and which, in so many ways, made me who I am today.
“I have also been privileged to hold two ministerial offices in the Scottish Government in that time, initially charged with setting up Scotland’s first social security service and now as Cabinet Secretary for Health.
“I will be 67 later this year and 72 by the end of the next Parliamentary term, and while I have a great deal of energy left and more I want to do, I think it is the right time for me to stand aside and let another take forward the work as an MSP for this constituency.
“I have also been privileged to hold two ministerial offices in the Scottish Government in that time, initially charged with setting up Scotland’s first social security service and now as Cabinet Secretary for Health.
“In Government and as a local MSP for a great constituency, I have learned a great deal and have had the opportunity to work with very many talented, committed and compassionate people.
“I will be 67 later this year and 72 by the end of the next Parliamentary term, and while I have a great deal of energy left and more I want to do, I think it is the right time for me to stand aside and let another take forward the work as an MSP for this constituency.”
Freeman says it remains her belief that Scotland should be an independent country.
She continued: “Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley is a beautiful part of our country and it is full of talented, enterprising and hard-working people. It will be an honour for whoever wins the constituency seat, as it has been for me.
“I have been hugely supported by SNP members in Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley and I am grateful to them all.
“I owe a particular debt to my hardworking and excellent constituency staff, Tracy, Paul and Jayde, without whom I literally couldn’t have done the job.
“I remain even firmer in my conviction that the right future for the people of this constituency and of Scotland is one where we have all the democratic and decision-making powers of a normal country.
“Securing independence by securing the right of people in Scotland to choose their own future will allow us to build on the progressive work of the SNP government since 2007 and fulfil the potential of this place and this country to build the prosperous, inclusive and progressive future we want for all of us and for future generations.
“In the months ahead I will continue my focus on the work we need to do as a country to meet the challenges facing us all in dealing with Covid-19, supporting our NHS and social care workers, and in remobilising our NHS and social care services to the greatest extent possible.”
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