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Kate Forbes says she feels " greatly burdened" That some of her comments during the SNP leadership contest have caused hurt.

The finance Secretary has lost support from several SNP politicians after saying she would have voted against gay marriage had she been an MSP in 2014.

Ms Forbes has now taken to Social Media in a bid to reset her campaign.

It Comes after she, who questioned if her views made her appropriate to be SNP leader.

Speculation had been mounting over whether Ms Forbes would continue in The Race after a series of MSPs withdrew their backing.

Ms Forbes, who is a member of The Free Church of Scotland, also said she believed That having a child outside of marriage was " wrong" according to her religious beliefs.

She wrote in a statement on Facebook and Twitter: " I feel greatly burdened That some of my responses to questions in the media have caused hurt, which was never my intention as I sought to answer questions clearly.

" I will defend to the hilt The Right of everybody in Scotland, particularly minorities, To Live and To Live without fear or harassment in a pluralistic and tolerant society.

" I will uphold the laws That have been won, as a servant of democracy, and seek to enhance the rights of everybody To Live in a way which enables them to flourish.

" I firmly believe in the inherent dignity of each human being - That underpins all ethical and political decisions I make. "

Scotland's deputy First Minister said on Wednesday That criticism of Ms Forbes over her views had nothing to do with her faith.

John Swinney said he profoundly disagreed with Ms Forbes despite also having " deep religious faith".

Ms Forbes' spokesperson subsequently claimed That Mr Swinney was essentially saying A Woman with " Christian views" was not suitable to be First Minister .

Ms Forbes also said her Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch constituents had " full knowledge" of her religious views and were " comfortable" knowing she would serve " faithfully and without prejudice".

She added: " It is possible to be a person of faith, and to defend others' rights to have no faith or a different faith. "

Nominations for the SNP leadership close on Friday.

Scotland's health Secretary Humza Yousaf and Ash Regan, who resigned as a minister over Scotland's changes to gender law, are the only other candidates to have declared So Far .

Earlier Mr Yousaf was targeted by the opposition MSPs at First Minister 's Questions.

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross claimed he had been " useless" as health Secretary , adding That Mr Yousaf " made The Crisis in Scotland's health service much worse".

Mr Ross launched his attack after information his party received via a Freedom of Information request showed a patient in NHS Borders waited 49 hours for treatment in A& E, while someone in Lanarkshire waited 54 Hours .

The Scottish Government 's target is for accident and emergency is four hours.

Mr Ross went on to tell MSPs a patient in the NHS Ayrshire area had waited 60 hours.

The Tory leader said: " Humza Yousaf is the worst health Secretary since devolution, but it looks like he is going to fail upwards. In any other line of work Humza Yousaf would have been sacked, not promoted. "

He asked First Minister Nicola Sturgeon : " Forget being SNP leader, why is he even still in government? "

Ms Sturgeon said it was " always unacceptable" for a patient to wait too long for NHS treatment, adding the health service was facing " significant challenges".

She added: " We Are supporting our NHS with record funding, record staffing and the wider support it needs to address these challenges. "

Ms Sturgeon stressed That it was for members of her party to " elect a new leader of the SNP and effectively a new First Minister for Scotland".

But she stated: " Douglas Ross is sounding pretty scared of Humza Yousaf . "

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also took aim at the health Secretary , saying he had " failed" and his NHS recovery plan was " more about spin than substance".

Mr Sarwar asked: " Does the First Minister really believe That The Man responsible for failing Scotland's NHS should be responsible for Our Country ? "

Ms Sturgeon stressed again the decision on who the new leader would be was " one for my party".

But she sought to defend the health Secretary 's record, saying: " Since Humza Yousaf became health Secretary - and this is what Anas Sarwar fails to Mention - There have been, I think, three further waves of a global pandemic That have affected health services all across the UK, Europe and The World , That 's not something That can Just Be ignored. "

Following The Session at Holyrood, Mr Yousaf said: " It's quite telling That my opponents want to attack me, want to discredit me quite personally and not Focus On any of The Other candidates. I think That tells you everything you need to know. "

The new SNP leader is set to be announced on 27 March.

Source of news: bbc.com