Scotland’s Chief Minister Nicola Sturgeon, has announced his resignation from the post he has held for more than eight years, after a mandate marked by the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union and the repeated demands for a second independence referendum and, in recent weeks, due to the controversies surrounding the ‘trans law’.
Sturgeon, who replaced Alex Salmond in November 2014 after the failure of precisely the first consultation and is the head of government who has been in power the longest, has appeared before the media in Edinburgh to confirm what the main British media had already announced hours before.
“Today I announce my intention to resign as chief minister and leader of my party,” Sturgeon has stated, who nevertheless has clarified that it is not an immediate departure, but that he will remain in both positions until a successor is chosen.
The Scottish leader has appealed to the “sense of duty” and “love” for the party and the “country” to justify a decision which, as he has pointed out on several occasions, is not as sudden as it might seem. Thus, she has recognized the wear and tear caused by her long period in power and, more recently, facing challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sturgeon has clarified that it is not due to “short-term pressures”, even though there have been “difficult issues” in the most recent stage. The Government has been the object of criticism in recent weeks, among other reasons, for the law that favors gender reassignment, blocked from London and criticized by conservative groups.
“Winning independence is the cause to which I have dedicated my life,” Sturgeon acknowledged, leaving it to the SNP as a whole to decide key issues about this cause at the March congress. Sturgeon has advocated, for example, turning the upcoming midterm elections into a ‘de facto’ referendum on secession.
a life in politics
“I am also a human being”, He has indicated in a speech with personal and family allusions and in which, however, he has clarified that he will not completely withdraw from political life, to which he has promised to remain linked in the defense of causes that he considers important.
Born in the city of Irvine in 1970, Sturgeon has been a member of the Scottish National Party (SNP) since he was a teenager. and has dedicated herself full time to politics since before her 30th birthday, after a brief stint as a lawyer. In recent years, the SNP has gained weight in both the Scottish and Central Parliaments.
Possible replacements include the current ‘number two’ of the Scottish Executive, John Swinney, and ministers Kate Forbes, Angus Robertson and Humza Yousaf, according to the BBC.