Ross Greer to stand for Scottish Greens leadership

Scottish Greens MSP Ross Greer has announced he will stand for the party leadership.

The West Scotland MSP said he wanted to roll out free bus travel for all Scots and increase taxes on the "super rich".

He will officially launch his campaign at a news conference later.

It comes after Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie, Holyrood's longest-serving party chief, said in April that he would not seek re-election. Lorna Slater, co-leader since 2019, said she would run again.

Green co-leaders serve two-year terms and under party rules, one of them has to be a woman.

Greer told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland that if successful, he would prioritise measures to cut emissions and the cost of living.

He said he would aim to fund the expansion of free bus travel to all Scots by making the country's tax system "fairer" and ending "tax breaks that the super rich have given themselves".

Greer played a key role in a Green-SNP power-sharing deal at Holyrood, which came to a dramatic end after almost three years in April 2024.

He said he was proud of policy changes supported by the his party in that time - citing the expansion of free school meals, the cancellation of school meal debt, changes to income tax and a nature restoration fund.

The MSP said he would be "absolutely willing" to work with the SNP again, despite the party having ditched several of the policies championed by the Greens since John Swinney became first minister.

However, he drew the line at working with an SNP led by current Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes, who the Greens have criticised for her views on LGBT rights, gay marriage and abortion.

"I think that Kate's values and the values of the Scottish Greens are quite far apart," Greer said.

"The kind of country that we want to build, and the kind of action that we would want to take to cut people's bills, to lift children out of poverty, to tackle the climate emergency, I don't think is the kind of agenda she has."

Greer, Harvie and Slater have drawn criticism from some further to the left in their party who oppose working with the SNP again.

Greer is expected to face a challenge from disgruntled members for the top spot on the West Scotland regional list ahead of next year's Scottish election, potentially scuppering his chances of being re-elected to Holyrood.

At his conference speech in April, Harvie hit out at a "small minority" within the Greens that he claimed were damaging the party and its reputation.

Greer told the BBC he was looking forward to the results of the selection contest for next year's Holyrood ballot.

"The Scottish Greens are a democratic party," he said. "Every member has an equal say."

The MSP added: "I think the vast majority of our party members have consistently expressed that they do believe in the vision that I'm setting out."

Gillian MacKay, who was behind the legislation to create buffer zones to limit protests around abortion clinics, has announced she will challenge Slater for the other co-leadership role.

The leadership contest is expected to be decided by the end of August before Holyrood returns from its summer break.

Greer became Holyrood's youngest-ever MSP when he was elected aged 21 in 2016.

He joined the party aged 15 and served as a member of the Scottish Youth Parliament.

Greer, from Dunbartonshire, cut short a degree in politics and psychology at the University of Strathclyde to take up a job with Yes Scotland ahead of the 2014 independence referendum.

He is currently his party's education and finance spokesperson, having previously held culture, skills and Europe briefs.