FORMER first minister, Henry McLeish has called for first-past-the-post MSPs to be scrapped, and for Holyrood to be filled with politicians elected through the regional list.

The ex-Labour leader, who held the top job between 2000 and 2001, told BBC’s Good Morning Scotland that he believes using only proportional representation would mean parties would have to co-operate.

“You could have a PR system that could retain the constituencies, but possibly have two members, but elected on a different basis .

“What that would do is give you a parliament that would never have an overall majority. That would be one box that I would gratefully tick.

“Secondly, it would mean that people would have to speak to each other.”

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The radio interview coincided with the 20th anniversary of the reconvening of the Scottish Parliament.

McLeish also said it was still too early to say whether the Parliament had been a success.

“It’s in its infancy ... In the stock of things, Westminster has been on that site in some form for nearly 1000 years – we’re just on the foothills of building a new Scotland, a new parliament, so in that sense I think there is a great opportunity to reflect seriously and then look forward.”

Malcolm Chisholm, who was deputy health minister in McLeish’s administration, disagreed with his old boss.

“Don’t entirely agree with Henry McLeish that too early to judge whether Scottish Parliament a success.”

He added: “Many great achievements over the years and helped comparatively by recent catastrophic failures of 1000-year-old parliament elsewhere!”