Humza Yousaf has 'absolute confidence' in Michael Matheson following row over £11,000 iPad data bill

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Humza Yousaf has insisted he has "absolute confidence" in Michael Matheson as the SNP leader faced calls to sack the Health Secretary over an £11,000 data roaming bill.The First Minister claimed today his Cabinet colleague had committed an "honest mistake" after he racked up the five-figure sum on his parliament-issued iPad while on a family holiday in Morocco last Christmas.Matheson initially said the data roaming charges related to work he had undertaken as part of MSP duties - and blamed an out-of-date sim card for the eye-watering data bill.But the SNP member for Falkirk West later agreed to pay back all of the £11,000 bill from his own pocket after questions mounted over why taxpayers should pick up the tab.It was then revealed yesterday that more than £7,000 of data was charged on just a single day.Speaking at First Minister's Questions, Yousaf said: "Michael has agreed to pay back the full amount, and he has admitted to honest mistakes being made.

He will elaborate on that and certainly reflect on that."I understand that in our politics the very first place we all go to is to think the very worst of each other - I hold my hands up, I've often done that myself."But honest mistakes do happen, Michael has been a member of this parliament since its inception.

All of us who have worked with him know he is a man of honesty and of integrity."Instead of rushing to besmirch each other's character, perhaps our politics would be a little better if we gave each other the benefit of the doubt."Douglas Ross claimed the row meant the Health Secretary had "stopped doing his job" after he cancelled a planned ministerial visit to a GP surgery in Glasgow earlier today.The Scottish Conservatives leader said: "Scotland’s NHS is in