Nicola Sturgeon resigns – live: Tearful Scottish first minister says ‘politics is brutal’ as she quits

SNP leader has announced she will stand down as first minister of Scotland after eight years

‘My time is now’: Nicola Sturgeon resigns as Scotland’s first minister

Nicola Sturgeon lamented the “brutal” nature of politics as she announced her resignation as first minister after more than eight years in the job.

The outgoing FM insisted that recent “pressures” on trans rights issues had no role to play in her decision to resign.

The SNP leader said she was “confident” of leading her party to further electoral success but that the time was “right” for her to step aside.

Speaking at a news conference in Edinburgh earlier, Ms Sturgeon said: “In my head and in my heart I know that the time is now, that it’s right for me, for my party and my country.”

She had been heavily criticsed by some in her own party over her stance on transgender issues and her handling of the Isla Bryson case.

Ms Sturgeon had also come under fire for saying that her party would fight the next general election as a de-facto referendum on Scottish independence, an issue she said the SNP was now “free” to decide following her exit.

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[15 February 2023 15:50 · Matt Mathers]

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The Labour leader said today his party had changed ‘permanently, fundamentally, irrevocably’, writes political commentator Andrew Grice Yet nothing is forever in politics.

Read Andrew’s full piece here:

[15 February 2023 16:20 · Matt Mathers]

What does Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation mean for Scottish independence?

She has been first minister for eight years, and the SNP has been in charge of the devolved government in Scotland for 16 years. That is a remarkable run, writes chief politics commentator John Rentoul.

But what does Sturgeon’s imminent departure mean for the independence cause?

Read John’s full piece below:

[15 February 2023 17:00 · Matt Mathers]

Who will replace Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader?

Politics correspondent Adam Forrest takes a look at the runners and riders in the race to replace the outgoing FM:

[15 February 2023 17:30 · Lucy Skoulding]

Sturgeon says her departure allows SNP to ‘choose its path’ on independence

Nicola Sturgeon stunned both Holyrood and Westminster with the shock announcement that she is standing down as SNP leader and Scotland’s first minister after eight years.

She said her resignation now “frees the SNP” to choose the path it believes to be the right one on the issue of Scottish independence without worrying about “the perceived implications for my leadership”.

The SNP chief suggested that she had been “wrestling” with the decision for several weeks now, saying she had had to consider the “physical and mental impact” of leading the country after being in charge since 2014.

[15 February 2023 18:00 · Lucy Skoulding]

Summary of Sturgeon’s resignation so far

Nicola Sturgeon today announced in a shock decision at a press conference that she will stand down as first minister of Scotland after eight years.

She said her decision to resign is not about “short term pressures” but she did say there are “difficult issues” facing the government.

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said Sturgeon had “refused to accept the result” of the referendum for Scottish independence in 2014.

Sturgeon’s predecessor, Alex Salmond, said that a new leader of SNP could reunite the independence movement.

Anas Sarwar, leader of the Scottish Labour Party, said Sturgeon is an “able politician” who led Scotland through some of the most “challenging times” our country has seen recently in history.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon welcomes Sinn Fein vice president Michelle O’Neill (PA) (PA Archive)

[15 February 2023 18:30 · Lucy Skoulding]

MP calls for ‘neutral caretaker CEO’ to take over from Sturgeon

SNP MP for Edinburgh Joanna Cherry said the party needs a “neutral caretaker CEO” to take over as leader after Nicola Sturgeon has stepped down.

Cherry tweeted: “The SNP Leadership & party management have been deeply bound together. I cannot see any circumstances in which Peter Murrell can continue as Chief Executive under a new leader who must be free to choose a successor.

“Meantime we need a neutral caretaker CEO.”

[15 February 2023 19:00 · Lucy Skoulding]

Support for Scottish Independence highest since 2021

Support for an independent Scotland has reached its highest peak since 2021 as Nicola Sturgeon steps down as First Minister.

At the end of 2021, support for indepdence shot all the way up to about 54%, according to data from whatscotlandthinks.org collected from 10 different polling companies.

The figure is now sitting firmly at the 51% mark, but it is higher that is has been for over a year,

Support dropped below 50% at about a quarter of the way through 2022. It remained below the 50% all the way until the end of 2022.

The trend has been on the rise since 2023, and now more than 50% of people say they would vote yes in an independence referendum.

[15 February 2023 19:30 · Lucy Skoulding]

Pro-independence leader of Catalonia praises Sturgeon

Pere Aragonès, who is the pro-independence leader of Catalonia in Spain, which tried to break away from the rest of Spain in a 2017 bid, has praised Nicola Sturgeon after she quit as Scotland’s First Minister.

He said on Twitter: “Thank you, @NicolaSturgeon for your courage and political commitment to progress, social justice and your tireless struggle for freedom. Your leadership will continue inspiring independence movements. You will always have Catalonia as an ally.”

Catalans supporting independence have been campaigning for a Scotland-style referendum for years.

But the movement has slowed up recently due to in-fighting between the two main pro-independence political parties.

[15 February 2023 19:39 · Sam Rkaina]

Alex Salmond says he sees Sturgeon’s resignation as ‘opportunity'

Former First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond appeared on BBC Radio 4’s World At One show and was asked about the benefits of Sturgeon’s resignation for his party, Alba.

He said: “Well, what I see as an opportunity is to reset the independence movement.

“If you get somebody who is looking to reunite the movement, perhaps through the vehicle of an independence convention, whereby you take a range of parties, and indeed cross-party movements, and bring it under the same tent, then that would be a highly significant move.

“Not just by reuniting the movement, which would be a good idea, but also, I think, by separating the case for independence from the day-to-day business of government.

“Nicola was very, very dominant within the SNP government in terms of decision-making, and that’s great when things are going well.

“But when things start to come unstuck, as they have been over the last few months, then one thing you have to be aware of is the cause of the case for independence suffering from the day to day problems of government.”

Alex Salmond (Stefan Rousseau/PA) (PA Wire)

[15 February 2023 19:40 · Sam Rkaina]

We’re ending our live coverage of Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation but keep checking independent.co.uk for the latest updates.