Scottish government minister Graeme Dey has become the latest SNP MSP to announce he will not stand for re-election next year.

Mr Dey, minister for veterans and for higher and further education since 2023, said he could not commit to another five-year term.

A former newspaper journalist, he served as minister for transport from 2021 to 2022, having previously served as minister for parliamentary business and veterans from 2018 to 2021.

He becomes the 13th MSP to declare an intention to step down from parliament, and the 10th SNP member.

Others SNP members include fellow minister Richard Lochhead and former First Minister Humza Yousaf.  Audrey Nicoll, Ruth Maguire, James Dornan, Christine Grahame and Michelle Thomson are also not seeking re-election. Former FM Nicola Sturgeon is undecided.

“It has been my absolute privilege to serve the people of Angus South and represent the SNP in the Scottish Parliament for the past 14 years,” said Mr Dey, who was sports editor of Dundee-based newspaper The Courier before switching to politics.

“And to have been afforded the honour of serving as a Scottish Government minister under three different First Ministers is beyond anything I could have imagined when I was first elected in 2011.

“However, I have informed the Angus South Constituency Association of my decision not to seek the nomination to be the SNP candidate in 2026.”

He explained: “Were I to be successfully re-elected, serving a further five year term would see me approaching my 69th birthday when the 2031 elections came around. And that’s not a commitment I feel able to make.”