The Year That Was 2021

John Swinney looks set to be first minister as he's backed by potential challenger Forbes. Following his announcement he was running to be the next leader of the SNP and new First Minister of Scotland, John Swinney, the former deputy to Nicola Sturgeon for almost a decade, looks set to win the top job after potential rival Kate Forbes announced she is backing him. The team analyse what might happen next, whether anyone else will put their name forward for the role, and - if Swinney is unopposed - how his premiership might unfold. Will he be able to pull a divided SNP together, and will his second time as SNP leader go more smoothly than the first?

First Minister Humza Yousaf has announced his resignation. What happens now? The team chats about how events unfolded over the weekend, culminating in First Minister Humza Yousaf announcing his plans to resign on Monday, after just 13 months in post, following the fallout from his scrapping of the Bute House agreement with the Scottish Greens the previous week. With divisions in both the party and parliament exposed, are we now heading for a Holyrood election, or an internal SNP leadership election, and who might the candidates be? As names begin to be put forward, the team discuss what might happen next.

First Minister Humza Yousaf faces a no-confidence vote after a dramatic day at Holyrood. The team react to the termination of the Bute House agreement between the SNP and the Scottish Greens, from the furious reaction from the Greens leadership to the fiery FMQs that followed. With Scottish Conservatives leader Douglas Ross saying he will bring a no-confidence motion to Parliament next week, and the SNP's former power sharing partners confirming they will vote against the First Minister, is this the end of the line for Humza Yousaf's premiership?

The Scottish Government announces it is dropping its 2030 net zero emissions target. The team discuss the political implications of the SNP & Scottish Greens government announcing it's 2030 net zero target is "out of reach", as well dropping its annual and interim targets for cutting greenhouse gas emissions, including if it will hit the parties in the polls, and if this represents a wider movement from UK parties away from green promises and policies. Also in Holyrood, Scotland's only gender care clinic that prescribes puberty blockers for under 18s has announced it's stopping prescriptions following a review by Dr. Hilary Cass, and in Westminster, PM Rishi Sunak's smoking ban for those born after January 1st 2009 has passed the first hurdle, could this be the legacy legislation he's looking for?

The Scottish Labour MSP on making Scotland accessible, working for the NHS, and more. MSP for the Glasgow Region, Pam Duncan-Glancy talks to Podlitical about her first "political moment" while in school, her mission to make Scotland a more accessible place for those with disabilities, and her election as the first permanent wheelchair user in Holyrood. Duncan-Glancy shares her thoughts on the new Scottish hate crime legislation, Israel/Gaza, and how she feels Labour is "grown up" enough to have disagreements inside the party and between the Scottish and UK Labour parties. For a range of political interviews, subscribe to Podlitical on BBC Sounds.

Scottish Trade Unions Congress General Secretary Roz Foyer sits down with Podlitical. Ahead of the STUC annual congress, Roz Foyer discusses how she first got involved in unions, and rose to become the STUC's first female General Secretary. Foyer talks about how women have always been at the heart of the Scottish union movement despite the perception of it being male-dominated, how she urges politicians to offer "real delivery" of workers rights and not just "talk the talk", and her vision for what needs to change to improve the lives of working people, from devolution of employment rights to taxing the wealthiest.For a range of political interviews, subscribe to Podlitical on BBC Sounds.

The Scottish Greens MSP for the West Scotland region talks to Podlitical post-conference. Ross Greer sits down with the podcast to discuss protest in the form of direct action, including why he backs the right for protesters to disrupt First Minister's Questions at Holyrood, and the reaction to the new Scottish hate crime bill which came into force. Greer talks about his career over the last eight years, why he sees a "more urgent need" than ever for green politics, and his involvement with the 2014 independence referendum, including why he feels the Yes campaign never faced a "public reckoning" on why it didn't deliver, and why he "certainly hopes" he won't be a politician for life.For a range of political interviews, subscribe to Podlitical on BBC Sounds.

The team talk rent controls, assisted dying, and the FM's first year in office. As Holyrood takes a break for recess, the Podlitical team look at some of the big bills moving through Scottish Parliament and causing some controversy, including the Housing Bill which could see rent controls introduced in areas of Scotland, the introduction of the Assisted Dying Bill which hopes to legalise medically assisted dying for people with terminal illnesses, and new hate crime laws which some claim will stifle free speech and increase pressure on the police. The team also discusses the first year of First Minister Humza Yousaf's premiership, and analyse some of the big events of the last 12 months.

The Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP on legalising assisted dying and representing Orkney. Liam McArthur joins Podlitical to discuss his upcoming bill on assisted dying for the terminally ill being presented at Holyrood, why he thinks a ban is unsustainable, and why he believes once a framework for assisted dying is in place we'll realise it was "long past due". McArthur also discusses the unique parts of representing a remote island constituency like Orkney, how he feels that local government has been "emasculated", and how he thinks perspectives in politics have become more binary.For a range of political interviews, subscribe to Podlitical on BBC Sounds.

How do politicians balance attacking the opposition, while appealing to their voters? In a week where parties have toed the line between attacking their political rivals while trying to woo their voter bases, the team discuss the risk of alienating the very people you want to win votes from. As the Conservative leadership look to the Rwanda Bill to define themselves as different from past iterations of the party ahead of the upcoming election, so too have opposition parties been defining themselves in relation to the Conservatives. Labour have been accused of aligning themselves with Margaret Thatcher, and the SNP have faced criticism over their rhetoric following the SNP event this week, where First Minister Humza Yousaf said he wanted to use the election to as an opportunity to make Scotland "Tory free".