Exclusive:Humza Yousaf called senior Scottish lawyer a 'Tory f**kwit' in WhatsApp message with Jason Leitch

Humza Yousaf called a senior lawyer a “Tory f**kwit” in a private WhatsApp conversation with Jason Leitch during the pandemic, it has emerged.

The former first minister, who was health secretary at the time, said he regretted the language used about Roddy Dunlop KC, the Dean of the Faculty of Advocates.

But Mr Dunlop told The Scotsman he found it “quite amusing” and did not take offence.

Humza Yousaf | Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

The message is contained in a tranche of WhatsApp conversations released to a member of the public, Peter Todd, following a Freedom of Information request.

These include exchanges between Mr Yousaf and Professor Leitch, who was the Scottish Government’s national clinical director until earlier this year, which have not previously been made public.

At 10.50pm on May 31, 2021, the senior SNP minister wrote to Prof Leitch: “Dunlop is a Tory f**kwit. Remember Twitter isn’t real life!”

The context for the remark is not clear due to redactions, but earlier that same day Mr Dunlop had been critical of comments made by Prof Leitch on the BBC.

The national clinical director had been discussing plans for a 3,000-person capacity Euro 2020 fan zone in Glasgow while the city remained under restrictions.

Quoting some of his remarks, Mr Dunlop had tweeted: “’What we are doing now’ (holding 630k people in level 3 with ruinous financial consequences) ‘is to allow that’ (3k people to gather in a fan zone and watch a 90min football game that’s on telly anyway) ‘to happen’. I’m sure this will be a great relief to the hospitality industry.”

Prof Leitch had replied on Twitter: “Roddy, I think you know that’s not what I said or meant.”

A spokesman for Mr Yousaf told The Scotsman: "The emergency phase of Covid, in particular, was a stressful, emotive and high-pressured time for everyone. These messages were intended to be private communications between two colleagues. Notwithstanding this, Humza regrets the language used, particularly given the professional and personal respect he has for Roddy Dunlop KC."

Mr Dunlop said the former first minister had called him to apologise after being approached by The Scotsman.

He said: “I know Humza well, having worked closely with him when he was Cabinet secretary for justice. He contacted me this morning to apologise, and I have no difficulty in accepting his apology. No offence is taken and, on the contrary, I actually find this quite amusing.”

Mr Yousaf was justice secretary from 2018 to 2021 and then took over the health brief following the Holyrood election in May 2021. He later served as first minister between March 2023 and May this year, when he was replaced by John Swinney.

Messages between Mr Yousaf and Prof Leitch were previously published as part of the UK Covid Inquiry. These included derogatory remarks about opposition politicians.

Prof Leitch called Labour MSP Daniel Johnson “a smarta*se” and accused Tory MSP Edward Mountain of "harrumphing like a child" during a briefing he had provided to politicians in 2021.

Meanwhile, WhatsApp messages submitted to the inquiry by Liz Lloyd, who was Nicola Sturgeon’s chief of staff, previously showed the former first minister describing Boris Johnson as a “f**king clown” in late October 2020.

Earlier this year, senior officials, including Prof Leitch, told the inquiry they routinely deleted WhatsApp messages. They say they were following Scottish Government guidance.