By Chris McCall

Copyright dailyrecord

Jamie Hepburn has quit the Scottish Government after he was accused of “aggressively” grabbing a Tory MSP in the Holyrood chamber in a row over seagulls . The Cumbernauld MSP wrote to John Swinney to offer his resignation today just hours after he was made subject of an official complaint from Douglas Ross . Hepburn, who was minister for parliamentary business, has decided to walk away from his Government role instead of facing an investigation into whether he had breached the ministerial code with his actions this week. In a letter to the First Minister, he admitted “my interaction with Douglas Ross fell well short” of his own “personal code of practice”. Ross, a former leader of the Scottish Conservatives, revealed details on Thursday of his altercation with Hepburn. He stunned Holyrood when he accused the SNP minister of “physical assault and verbal abuse” towards him. The incident took place when MSPs were filing out of the Scottish Parliament chamber on Wednesday evening at the conclusion of the day’s business. A furious Hepburn confronted Ross after the Tory had raised a point of order to complain he had not been invited to a Government summit scheduled for next week on how to tackle seagulls menacing communities. Ross’s intervention had briefly delayed MSPs from voting on landmark justice reforms to scrap the controversial not proven verdict after years of campaigning. Hepburn later told reporters he had “put my hand on his shoulder” and “probably used a few choice words I shouldn’t have” – but denied assaulting Ross. Scottish Government figures had strenuously denied on Thursday that Hepburn would resign over the matter. But the mood quickly changed after Ross sent a letter to the First Minister on Friday morning demanding he take action. Ross told the SNP leader: “Aggressively grabbing a fellow MSP, raising one’s voice in anger, and using foul and abusive language falls well below the standards set out. This amounts to bullying behaviour and, in my view, is a clear breach of the Ministerial Code. “I fear for other colleagues who may be exposed to this behaviour if Mr Hepburn continues in his position of power within your government.” Just hours later Hepburn announced he would be resigning. His letter to Swinney said: “Over the course of yesterday evening and today I have been reflecting on the incident that has been widely reported in the media in the last two days and discussing it with my family. “I have come to conclude that I want to offer my resignation as your Minister for Parliamentary Business. “I understand that that a complaint has been made to you with a suggestion that I be referred to the Independent Advisers on the Scottish Ministerial Code. “Irrespective of whether or not the Ministerial Code has been breached, even if there had been no complaint made, I believe I have not acted in accordance with my own personal code of practice. “This decision is one that I feel is for the best in these circumstances and the one that for my own part feel is the appropriate course of action. “I hope it would be felt by most, and not least you, that in my personal and professional undertakings I have always tried to act courteously in interacting with colleagues, either of our own party or others. “There is no denying that my interaction with Douglas Ross fell well short of that standard. “Despite whatever annoyance I felt at that particular moment, there is a manner in which that might have been conveyed, or indeed shouldn’t have been conveyed. That is not in utilising the language that I did. “I hope it is recognised on your part and others that this behaviour was quite out of character on my part.” To sign up to the Daily R ecord Politics newsletter, click here