THE bookies never lose, they say – and among the reasons for that is the research that goes into dictating the odds.
With Humza Yousaf announcing his intention to resign as First Minister and SNP leader, the markets are now opening on who will replace him.
So, who are the frontrunners in the betting markets to take up the spot as SNP chief, and likely Bute House?
Subscribe to The National for just £20 for an entire year
Who will be the next SNP leader?
William Hill is among the few bookies off the mark already – and its favourite is Neil Gray (below), the Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care.
The 38-year-old has held a number of ministerial jobs in recent years and has odds of 6/4.
That means if you put £5 on, and he netted the job, you’d make £7.50 profit (six divided by four, times five).
READ MORE: Who should replace Humza Yousaf as SNP leader? Have your say
Close behind him are Kate Forbes and John Swinney, both at odds of 2/1 – with the former having just been pipped to the post by Yousaf in the last leadership election, and Swinney a stalwart as Nicola Sturgeon’s deputy.
Betway concurs to an extent, giving Forbes (below) and Gray joint best odds of 2/1, with Swinney following at 3/1.
The leap following these three is considerable.
With William Hill, Jenny Gilruth has odds of 10/1 – so put £1 on and you’d get £11 back. Then it’s Mairi McAllan at 16/1 and the Alba Party’s Ash Regan at 25/1.
READ MORE: What happens next now Humza Yousaf has resigned as First Minister?
The other MSP among the ranking is Fergus Ewing at 50/1. He has been a critic of the SNP’s direction of travel.
Down at Westminster, Stephen Flynn (above) has distant odds of 40/1 and Joanna Cherry even further at 50/1. Flynn has ruled out a bid to become leader given that he is not based at Holyrood.
THE NEXT FM?
Meanwhile, Coral Bet has narrower odds on the next “First Minister” – which takes in who would be approved in the role by the Holyrood Parliament.
For Coral, Swinney is the favourite at 1/4 odds. You’d need to put £4 on just to make £1 in profit.
Forbes follows just behind at 1/2, while Gray is still a frontrunner at odds of 2/1.
They’re a bit less generous with the odds beyond those – McAllan has odds of 7/2. Gilruth of 5/1, Regan of 6/1 and Ewing of 16/1 – but the picture of three clear in the lead remains the same.
Though if you do fancy it... Betway is offering 33/1 on Nicola Sturgeon as next SNP leader!
Remember that odds are live and subject to change.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel