Scotland’s newest MSPs have arrived for their first day at Holyrood after last week’s election.
Some 64 new faces will walk the halls of the Edinburgh parliament following Friday’s results.
But little is expected to change after the SNP continued its domination of Holyrood, winning 58 seats, with Labour and Reform UK with 17 seats and the Greens on 15.
The Scottish Greens have regularly backed the SNP-led government’s plans in recent years and their record number of MSPs return yet another pro-independence majority.
The Scottish Conservatives slumped to 12 seats and the Lib Dems increased their share to 10.
One of the newly-elected number is current SNP MP Stephen Gethins, who is set to resign his Arbroath and Broughty Ferry seat at Westminster to sit in Holyrood.
Speaking to journalists as he began his first day, Mr Gethins said he hoped Scotland would be independent in this parliamentary term.
“I’ve seen the huge amounts of damage at Westminster, Brexit – £250 million a day it’s costing the taxpayer… cost of living having an impact on our public services as well,” he said.
“This is a Parliament that delivers for the people of Scotland – Westminster isn’t.”
Asked if he expected a ministerial role given he had made the switch from Westminster, Mr Gethins said: “I’ve got a big job for the people of Dundee City East, it’s a privilege to have been elected and I don’t want to be late for my first day of work.”
New Lib Dem MSP Adam Harley said he wanted to “hit the ground running”, adding: “I think, first and foremost… it’s to restore a bit of faith if I can locally, certainly.
“I did a lot of door knocking over the course of the last year and that word ‘scunnered’ I think became a word for the campaign.
“I very much sensed that across the board, to be honest, so I really just want to restore a bit of faith in the system, first and foremost.”
Fellow Lib Dem Yi-Pei Chou also said she was “very proud” her party had returned to the north-east of Scotland, having won no seats in the region in 2021.
Ms Chou, who was elected on the North East Scotland regional list, said her priority over the next five years would be to “protect our communities, give them the best and get their basic needs met”.
Newly-elected SNP MSP Jack Middleton – a former special adviser to both Humza Yousaf and John Swinney – said the SNP secured a “resounding” win which was “a huge endorsement of John Swinney’s strong leadership”.
Asked if he wanted a junior ministerial role, Mr Middleton said his “top priority is going to be standing up for the people of Aberdeen Central”.
Reform UK Scotland’s new MSPs arrived at Parliament en masse, led by party leader Lord Malcolm Offord.
One of the party’s 16 new MSPs is Max Bannerman, who was elected on the Highlands and Islands regional list.
He said his priority over the next five years will be “standing up for the folks at home”.
“I’m very clear why I was sent here, which is to hold what will be an SNP Government to account on the key issues that affect highlanders and islanders,” he said.
“So, infrastructure, the NHS, the fragile rural economy – there’s a whole host of other things, but those are the big things.”
The new Scottish Greens MSPs also arrived at Holyrood in a group, with newly-elected Glasgow Southside MSP Holly Bruce saying she felt “great” and Kayleigh Kinross O’Neill saying she was “very excited” to be starting her new job.
