Stephen Flynn

For other people named Stephen Flynn, see Stephen Flynn (disambiguation).

The Right Honourable Stephen Flynn MP
Official portrait, 2024
Leader of the Scottish National Party in the House of Commons
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 December 2022
Deputy	Mhairi Black Pete Wishart
SNP Party Leader	Nicola Sturgeon Humza Yousaf John Swinney
Preceded by	Ian Blackford
SNP Spokesperson for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy in the House of Commons
In office 1 February 2021 – 6 December 2022
Leader	Ian Blackford
Preceded by	Drew Hendry
Succeeded by	Alan Brown (Energy and Industrial Strategy)
Member of Parliament for Aberdeen South
Incumbent
Assumed office 12 December 2019
Preceded by	Ross Thomson
Majority	3,758 (8.1%)
Personal details
Born	Stephen Mark Flynn (1988-10-13) 13 October 1988 Dundee, Scotland
Political party	Scottish National Party
Spouse	Lynn Flynn
Children	2
Alma mater	University of Dundee

Stephen Mark Flynn (born 13 October 1988) is a Scottish politician who has served as the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) in the House of Commons since December 2022. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Aberdeen South since 2019.

In December 2022, Flynn announced his intention to run in the election to succeed Ian Blackford as the SNP Westminster leader. He defeated Alison Thewliss to become leader.

Early life and career

Member for Aberdeen South

Stephen Flynn was born on 13 October 1988 in Dundee, and went to school in Brechin and Dundee. He studied at the University of Dundee, graduating with an undergraduate Master of Arts (MA Hons) in history and politics, and a Master of Letters (MLitt) degree in international politics and security studies.

Flynn previously worked as an assistant to Callum McCaig and in the office of Maureen Watt in Aberdeen.

Flynn was first elected to Aberdeen City Council for the Kincorth/Nigg/Cove Ward in 2015 and served as leader of the SNP group on Aberdeen City Council from 2016 till his election to Parliament in 2019. Flynn resigned as a councillor on the grounds that he could not effectively serve on the council and as an MP at the same time, saying to The Press and Journal, "I have also consistently stated that it is not practically possible to serve a full term in a parliament and dedicate time to be an effective local councillor."

Parliamentary career

Flynn was elected to Parliament as MP for Aberdeen South at the 2019 general election with 45% of the vote and a majority of 3,990 votes. Following his election, Flynn was appointed to the role of Shadow SNP Deputy Spokesperson (Treasury - Financial Secretary). He was promoted to the front bench in February 2021 as Shadow SNP Spokesperson (Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy). Flynn was re-elected to Parliament as MP for Aberdeen South with a decreased vote share of 32.8% and a decreased majority of 3,758.

SNP Westminster leader

See also: Frontbench Team of Stephen Flynn

Flynn speaking during Prime Minister's Questions, 7 February 2024

Following the decision of Ian Blackford to stand down as the SNP Westminster Group Leader, Flynn announced his candidacy for the role, defeating Alison Thewliss 26–17 in a vote of Scottish National Party MPs. His appointment to His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council was announced on 28 March 2024 as part of the 2024 Special Honours, thereby granting him the title The Right Honourable for life.

Flynn's leadership came at a time of a cost of living crisis and when the United Kingdom's Supreme Court set out that the Scottish Parliament does not have the devolved competence to hold an independence referendum without the consent of the British Government. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon had set out plans for the next election to the House of Commons to be a proxy referendum on independence, putting the Frontbench Team at the centre of a constitutional campaign within Scotland.

In February 2024, Flynn was highly critical of the role of the speaker of the House of Commons Lindsay Hoyle during a parliamentary debate on a Gaza ceasefire motion. Flynn stated that "he and his party has been treated with utter contempt and would need "significant convincing" that the Speaker's position was "not now intolerable". The SNP motion was criticised by, amongst others, David Lammy, who stated that "The SNP motion appears one sided. For any ceasefire to work, it must, by necessity, be observed by both sides, or it is not a ceasefire...Israelis have the right to the assurance that the horror of 7 October cannot happen again."

In the 2024 general election, the SNP suffered huge losses losing the vast majority of their seats. As a result, Flynn unveiled a new much slimmed down frontbench including himself, Pete Wishart as his deputy and Kirsty Blackman as chief whip. On 23 July 2024, Labour withdrew the whip from 7 of its MPs who had supported an amendment tabled by Flynn to scrap the two-child benefit cap that was introduced by the Cameron–Clegg coalition in 2013, with Flynn claiming that scrapping the cap would immediately raise 300,000 children out of poverty. MPs rejected the SNP amendment by 363 votes to 103. The seven Labour MPs suspended for six months were John McDonnell, Richard Burgon, Ian Byrne, Rebecca Long-Bailey, Imran Hussain, Apsana Begum and Zarah Sultana, all of whom now sit as independents. Keir Starmer launched a Child Poverty Taskforce, in which expert officials from across government would work together on how best to support more than four-million children living in poverty.

Double jobbing controversy

In November 2024, Flynn declared his intention to stand as the SNP candidate for the Aberdeen South and North Kincardine Holyrood constituency (currently held by Audrey Nicoll, also of the SNP) at the 2026 Scottish Parliament election. Despite speculation that this move might be a step towards replacing John Swinney as party leader, Flynn denied such ambitions, expressing full confidence in Swinney's leadership. Flynn said that he planned to hold his Westminster seat until the next UK general election, and said that his decision to double job between Holyrood and Westminster would offer him a "platform to speak up for Scotland's interest" in both parliaments.

Flynn's intent to double job as an MP and an MSP was controversial. While double jobbing between the Westminster and Holyrood parliaments is permitted, SNP party rules introduced prior to the 2021 Holyrood election require SNP MPs to resign their seat at Westminster before seeking selection to Holyrood. The SNP had previously criticised Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross for simultaneously holding Westminster and Holyrood seats. Flynn told The Press and Journal that he believed the party's selection rules were "election-specific". Audrey Nicoll, the incumbent MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, issued a statement declaring her intent to stand again in her constituency in the 2026 election: "As a constituency MSP, my focus will remain to work tirelessly for constituents regardless of any internal party selection processes. I look forward to any contest, where of course it will be for branch members to select those they wish to represent them in Holyrood in the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections."

Flynn's decision met with criticism from both other parties and from SNP politicians. Former SNP MP Joanna Cherry, who abandoned a selection bid for Holyrood in 2020 owing to the change in rules, sarcastically remarked in a post on Twitter that the rule was "person-specific" and predicted that, having "served its purpose", it would not be in place for the next Holyrood election. Former SNP minister George Adam said it was "wrong" for SNP MPs to try to also sit at Holyrood, and added that he was "disappointed" with Flynn's decision. MSP Emma Roddick wrote in a tweet that she hoped Flynn "rethinks" his plans to stand in both houses. Roddick's unconventionally-worded tweet was interpreted as an acrostic referring to Flynn as a "prick". In return, Roddick was subjected to negative press briefing by an unnamed SNP source to the Daily Mail, accusing her of "rank hypocrisy" for previously double jobbing as an MSP and councillor from 2021 until resigning her local authority seat in 2022, and describing her as "a rubbish MSP who has achieved nothing and has everything to lose from a more talented class of SNP politicians coming through to shake up Holyrood and inject a bit of imagination and life where lazy MSPs like her have so badly failed."

The public feud within the party led to the SNP Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville issuing a warning against negative briefings to the press, and asked members to "leave yer [sic] ego to the side for the benefit of a cause much bigger than any of us." The First Minister, John Swinney, said that the SNP had yet to come to a decision on whether its politicians could double job, but remarked that "We've had times in the past when we've had dual mandates - I had a dual mandate myself for two years in the early days of devolution", and would make a decision "in the fullness of time". Flynn described the reaction to his decision as "not pleasant", but re-iterated his intention to stand as an MSP, and said that he had a "fairly cordial conversation" by phone with Audrey Nicoll. Flynn explicitly denied suggestions that he had asked Nicoll to step aside for him. A source close to Nicoll, however, told BBC Scotland that she had perceived an "underlying inference" in the phone call that he wanted her to stand down.

Both the Scottish Conservatives and Scottish Labour accused Flynn of hypocrisy. Scottish Conservative MSP Graham Simpson submitted an amendment for a Holyrood vote on banning double jobbing. Scottish Labour and the Scottish Greens declared their support for the motion. One SNP MSP remarked to The Times that "It's the first time the SNP Holyrood group has been this united about anything for a while. Angry about Flynn." Another described Flynn's attitude to SNP MSPs as "nothing but patronising". SNP MSPs were reported to be urging John Swinney to support Graham Simpson's amendment. A supporter of Flynn, however, said that the fact the "old Better Together alliance [is] reuniting to try and stop Flynn coming to Holyrood should tell the SNP everything it needs to know... MSPs may be worried Flynn opens the floodgates on challenges across the country, but members deserve that choice." An end to double jobbing was backed by the Secretary of State for Scotland, Ian Murray, who told the Scottish Affairs Select Committee of the House of Commons; "It is something I would find difficult. There is not enough time to do the one job, never mind two. So I would have thought double jobbing is something we should ensure doesn't happen."

Personal life

Flynn is married to Lynn Flynn with two children. His father Mark Flynn is a Dundee City councillor who was elected as leader of the council in August 2024.

Flynn has suffered from a serious condition called avascular necrosis since his teens and underwent a hip replacement for it in 2020. In 2023, he told The News Agents "I was disabled" before the operation, and had walked with a crutch for eighteen years, which led to him reading more as a child.

External links

• Profile at Parliament of the United Kingdom
• Contributions in Parliament at Hansard
• Voting record at Public Whip
• Record in Parliament at TheyWorkForYou
• Profile on SNP website