Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes has called for greater support at Holyrood for politicians juggling the demands of parenthood.

The Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch MSP, whose daughter turned three this month, announced on Monday that she would not seek re-election next year.

Forbes has since criticised the Scottish Parliament’s crèche facilities, which are only available for three hours a day from Tuesday to Thursday.

The Scottish Parliament said its creche capacity was limited due to space but added it was “constantly looking” for ways to support members with caring responsibilities.

In 2020 Gail Ross, the SNP’s MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, announced that she would not seek re-election as she wanted to watch her son grow up.

Forbes said others who had taken a similar view included SNP minister Aileen Campbell, Labour MSP Jenny Marra and former Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson.

The deputy first minister said: “I am not the first and, unless anything changes, I am unlikely to be the last.

“So many parents know the pressures and the guilt of balancing all of this.”

Forbes, who has been an SNP MSP since 2016, covers a constituency which stretches from Mallaig on the west coast through the Great Glen to the Cromarty Firth.

She has the added challenge of an eight-hour return trip from her home to Edinburgh.

The former leadership contender said: “That adds a particular dimension because you know you are not going to be able to get home every night.”

Forbes said there were areas where Holyrood “could do more and do better”, such as its creche facility.

She added: “I have long been campaigning because it is limited to three hours a day and I don’t know anybody who only works three hours a day so that doesn’t make sense.

“And I’m certainly not advocating for the job to be any less demanding or all consuming.

“It has to be, by its very nature of representing people.

“But if we can’t even get some of the basic support right then it will always be difficult for mums and dads.”

In 2021 Marra questioned why the Scottish Parliament does not have a full-time nursery but Westminster does.

Forbes said she reached her decision over the summer recess and took into account that re-election would mean committing to a full five-year parliamentary term.

She told the programme that when her daughter went to school she would be “anchored” to one location.

The deputy first minister added that she was not willing to move to Edinburgh with a husband and three stepdaughters.

Forbes said: “That is why I have come to this decision.”

She also expressed concern that parents would be less represented in Holyrood unless the situation changed.

Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth told Good Morning Scotland that Forbes would be missed at Holyrood.

She added: “I think the points Kate has made about parliament and the provision of childcare are really important.”

Michelle Thomson, who ran Forbes’ SNP leadership campaign in 2023, told the programme it was disappointing to lose a politician of Forbes’ calibre, especially as she is only 35.

The Falkirk East MSP described the deputy first minister’s Highland constituency as “utterly vast” and the working hours in parliament as “incredibly long”.

She said something needed to change.

Thomson added: “The provision, in terms of nursery care, is still way too slight and that is a common complaint, not just of young women with children but also men as well.”

Forbes confirmed her intention to stand down in a letter to First Minister John Swinney.

She said she did not want to “miss any more of the precious early years of family life”.

Forbes will continue as an MSP for another nine months, with the Holyrood election scheduled for May 2026.

Swinney said she had made an “invaluable contribution to public life” over the past decade.

First elected in 2016, Forbes enjoyed a rapid rise to become Scotland’s first female finance secretary in 2020.

She was narrowly defeated in the 2023 SNP leadership contest by Humza Yousaf but returned to government as Swinney’s deputy last May.

She is among more than 20 SNP MSPs to have announced they will not seek re-election next year.

The Scottish Parliament said its creche capacity was limited to three hours per day by the Care Inspectorate in 2023, following a change in government regulations.

A spokesperson added: “We have had extensive discussions with the Care Inspectorate since then to explore extending that provision to offer longer periods of childcare.

“However, this is not possible within the confines of the space available in the building.”

The spokesperson credited the introduction of hybrid working for enabling MSPs to work more flexibly and take part in business remotely.

They said: “This has provided flexibility not only for those with children but also those with elderly parents, and other caring responsibilities.”