Neil McIntosh Editor of The Scotsman

Hello Voornaam,

A penny for Humza Yousaf's (unfiltered) thoughts today, his 38th birthday, after his first full week as First Minister?

It's been a punishing few days, starting with the arrest (and release, without charge as enquiries continue) of Peter Murrell, husband of Nicola Sturgeon and former Chief Executive of the Scottish National Party.

Simultaneous searches were made of both Murrell's home in Glasgow, and the SNP's headquarters in Edinburgh, with a blue tent being erected outside the former by police, and items being carried out the latter. There was only one story in Scotland that day, and the images will live long in the memory.

Regardless of the outcome - or even if there is no outcome - from this week's police actions, the questions surrounding the way the SNP has been run in recent years hang like a heavy cloud over Yousaf's position.

Remember: he was elected as the continuity candidate. The candidate backed by the SNP's establishment. The establishment that, apparently, didn't know the party's membership was falling precipitously, and then lied about it when asked by journalists. The establishment now facing serious questions about how the party's finances were managed through that period.

Unsurprisingly, Yousaf has had to start placing some distance between him and the establishment which wanted him to win. The questions, then, about what Yousaf represents - and his legitimacy as First Minister, when he won his leadership only narrowly - may start to be raised when a rather sleepy opposition at Holyrood gets back from its Easter holiday, and starts to think about how to make political capital from what is, undoubtedly, a mess.

Yousaf's declaration that Scottish independence is still "realistic" within five years looks, at the moment, to be one of heroic optimism.

There are other important matters to deal with, of course. As we reported on Tuesday, falling energy prices - and, thus, the lower tax take - will hurt the Scottish economy. The NHS needs urgent attention, too - cancer waiting times are now the worst on record, as we reported on Wednesday. And there are yet more public sector strikes coming down the line, if you'll pardon the pun - rail unions are threatening more action this summer.

Further afield, Donald Trump was charged with a range of offences on Tuesday - I thought former First Minister Henry McLeish's column the next day was an interesting and worrying read, as he explained how the nightmare he unleashed is far from over.

"Truth, trust, and tolerance in politics in the US are breaking down," because of Trump, wrote McLeish. "Issues of dignity, identity and revenge are in the ascendancy. This is largely based on anti-woke ideas, culture wars and conspiracy theories. In many Republican states, political and theocratic fundamentalism has undermined and demonised LGBTQ and women’s rights [...] The agonising challenge for the Republican party is what to do about Trump."

A heavy week in politics, then, but I hope you are already enjoying the start of the Easter weekend, and the glorious weather that Good Friday appears to have brought nearly all of Scotland (apologies if you are further afield, and it's less pleasant...). To help you on your way, we've speak to comedian Rachel Parris on her new guide to life, based on gems collected from her audiences, Carina Contini recommends pork belly for your Easter dinner, and we have lots of TV, music and arts recommendations to lift your spirit.

I hope you have a wonderful, restful Easter weekend.

Neil McIntosh

Editor, The Scotsman