Holyrood’s Presiding Officer is to stand down at the next election after over two decades as an MSP.
Ken Macintosh, who was first elected as an MSP in 1999, has said he will not seek re-election to the Parliament next year.
Macintosh was the Labour MSP for Eastwood between 1999 and 2016, after which he was returned as a List member for West Scotland.
After the 2016 election, MSPs voted to make him Presiding Officer.
He said: “After much reflection, I have decided not to seek re-election to the Scottish Parliament in May next year. It has been an honour to represent the people of East Renfrewshire and the West of Scotland for the last two decades and I would thank you for the trust you have placed in me.”
“The Scottish Parliament has delivered so much since 1999 and has grown in confidence and maturity, but there are clearly many challenges which lie ahead. The privilege of being Presiding Officer in this, my now final, term is something I will never forget and I will continue to do what I can to support the Parliament and the hopes and ambitions it sustains for our democracy.”
Macintosh also stood for the leadership of Scottish Labour on two occasions. Party leader Richard Leonard said:
“Ken has been a great servant of the Scottish Labour Party, the Parliament and most important of all, the people.
"An ardent supporter of devolution, and a member of the Parliament since 1999 his unstinting efforts as a Labour front bencher and over the last four years as the Presiding Officer have consistently made the case for the Parliament as a power for change. He is a kind and decent man with a strong sense of his own values. The Scottish Labour Party wishes him, Claire and the family well.”
