By Bill Heaney

Updated Thursday, March 30, 15.45

Humza Yousaf was urged to “get better” at being First Minister as he spent his first one “ranting on” about how bad the UK Government was in the midst of a duffing up from Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross.

At one point, some of the SNP back benchers rolled their eyes as their brand new leader shouted about how the Conservatives and Mr Ross were a “third-rate party with a third rate leader.”

FMQs was interrupted five or six times in 10 minutes by shouts from climate change  protesters which ended up with the session being suspended and the public gallery cleared, and only school pupils being allowed in.

Mr Yousaf was questioned about his bitterly criticised cabinet reshuffle where he axed prominent roles for tourism and social security but brought in an independence minister on £100,000 a year.

He shouted across the chamber that Scotland needs independence from the UK urgently due to allegations that the Westminster government are at fault for the increase in food banks, high energy prices and austerity.

Mr Ross used his questions to wind up Mr Yousaf as he accused him of “reading from a script ad nauseum” and not even responding properly to him.  He said: “Less than 48 hours ago, Humza Yousaf stood in this chamber and promised to be ‘First Minister for all of Scotland.’ And yesterday he had an opportunity to prove that with the new ministerial team, but he failed in his first big test.

“This is the largest government in the history of devolution, with more Ministers than ever before. But key ministerial posts relating to social security and tourism were abolished yet a new Minister for Independence was created.

“Humza Yousaf is leading a divided party that has got no confidence in his government’s ability. And it’s no wonder why, he’s stuffed his cabinet full of his predecessor’s lackeys – ministers with almost as poor a track record in government as he has.

“More ministers than ever before and yet he managed to appoint just one that didn’t support him in the leadership election. He squeaked a win and then forced the former Finance Secretary Kate Forbes and her supporters out of government in an act of petty vengeance.

“Humza Yousaf is more divisive than even Nicola Sturgeon was. “He’s already split his own party down the middle and now he wants to do the same with the country.”

Mr Ross then quoted some critics from within the SNP before stating “I really hope the First Minister gets better than this. And he doesn’t just have to take it from me.

“I know he can’t see the faces behind him, but we can see the reactions of his back benchers to his contribution here.”

He pointed out that SNP sources which described one of his axed ministers as “one of the few non-idiots that were available” and “there is a concerning lack of numeracy skills within this group” and accused Mr Yousaf of just “ranting.”

The new First Minister continued to attack Mr Ross in particular and the Scottish Tories in general.

He said: “Yes, I make no apology whatsoever for having a minister for independence because my goodness, we need independence now more than ever before.

“We need it now more than ever before because in energy-rich Scotland, we have Scots who are fuel poor because of the UK Government’s policies. We need independence now more than ever before because we have more food banks in this country than at any other time than ever before because of over a decade of austerity.”

Humza Yousaf was accused of being an even more divisive figure than Nicola Sturgeon – after creating the post of minister for independence in his government.

Douglas Ross said the new First Minister had succeeding in splitting both the country, with his immediate focus on a referendum, and his party, with his ministerial appointments.

He had undermined his own vow to be the First Minister for all of Scotland, by appointing “a taxpayer-funded nationalist campaigner”.

Douglas Ross said: “On Tuesday, Humza Yousaf promised to be ‘First Minister for all of Scotland’.  But look at his first week in office: on Monday, within minutes of winning the leadership of his party, he said he would push ‘right away’ for powers to hold another referendum.

“On Tuesday, in a call with the Prime Minister, he demanded another independence vote, and yesterday he appointed a Minister for independence – a taxpayer-funded nationalist campaigner.

“Instead of looking for cooperation between Scotland’s two governments he’s looking for a fight.

“Humza Yousaf’s own colleagues have no confidence in his government’s chances of reviving Scotland’s sluggish economy.

“Ivan McKee, said that this government needs to ‘reset’ its relationship with business, while an SNP source describes a minister he axed as ‘one of the few non-idiots that was available’.

“Former SNP minister Alex Neil insisted ‘the best economic brains in the government have been sidelined’, and another party source said: ‘There is a concerning lack of numeracy skills in this group’.

“Humza Yousaf is leading a divided party that has no confidence in his government’s ability.

“And no wonder, when he’s stuffed his cabinet full of his predecessor’s lackeys – ministers with almost as poor a track record in government as he has.

“He squeaked a win and then forced the former finance secretary Kate Forbes and her supporters out of government in an act of petty vengeance.

“And now to shore up his position within his feuding party, he’s back to pushing independence because it’s the only thing the SNP still agrees on.

“Humza Yousaf is more divisive than even Nicola Sturgeon was.  He’s already split his own party down the middle – and now he wants to do the same with the country.

“If he can’t even unite his own party, how can he possibly unite the country?”

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar said he thought it only fair that his question to Humza Yousaf should be about health since that was the department he had been in charge of before his election to First Minister.

He told MSPs: “The new First Minister has a lot to get to grips with, so I thought it’s only fair that we should start with something he should already be across.

“There is a mental health crisis affecting children across Scotland, but they are struggling to access treatment.

“During Humza Yousaf’s time as Health Secretary more than 11,000 children and young people waited more than the 18-week standard for treatment.

Dumbarton lad Alan Galbraith pictured on holiday with his family.

“Shockingly, over 14,000 had their referral for mental health treatment rejected entirely.

“It’s not just two years of his failure, it’s sixteen years of SNP failure.

“This Government has never met their eighteen-week CAMHS standard.

“When Humza Yousaf was Health Secretary, Labour repeatedly called for a new referral system so that no young person is rejected for treatment, for every GP practice to have a dedicated mental health worker and for a mental health A&E in every health board so that patients can be fast tracked. But they failed to listen.

“For children like Alan and their families, incompetence has consequences, continuity won’t cut it and more of the same isn’t going to improve their lives.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton, pictured right,  his party is opposed the appointment of Scottish Government ministers because they believe that the appointment of Jamie Hepburn as minister for independence is a waste of time, money and energy.

Mr Cole-Hamilton said: “The government should be focused on issues such as the vast waiting times for mental health treatment.

“Just days after declaring that he would be a leader for all of Scotland, Humza Yousaf is appointing a permanent minister to continue agitating for the breakup of the UK at the taxpayers’ expense.

“Cramming mental health, social care and sport into a single role is an insult to the thousands awaiting support. Scottish Liberal Democrats want to see a dedicated mental health minister re-instated to tackle the sea of unmet need.

“Instead that time, money and energy will be spent on a minister for stirring up grudge and grievance, rather than dealing with real issues like long NHS waiting lists.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats are opposing the appointment of all ministers today to send a message that public services like our health service deserve better.”