SKY NEWS - Jennifer Scott - FEB 15, 2023
Nicola Sturgeon announces resignation as Scotland's first minister
The leader of the SNP says the shock announcement is not down to "short term pressures" but because the job "can only be done for so long [and is] now in danger of becoming too long".
Scotland's first minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced her resignation, saying the job "takes its toll on you and all around you".
The SNP leader made the shock announcement during a press conference in Edinburgh at her official residence, Bute House.
The 52-year-old said it had been "the very best job in the world" and one that has "sustained and inspired me in good times and in the toughest hours of my toughest days".
But Ms Sturgeon said she believed part of "serving well would be to know almost instinctively when the time is right" to step down, adding: "In my head and in my heart I know that time is now, that it is right for me and my party and for the country."
The longest serving and first woman first minister insisted her decision was not down to "short term pressures", such as the ongoing divisions in her party about transgender rights.
Instead, she said her exit "frees the SNP to choose the path it believes to be the right one" when it comes to Scottish independence - due to be discussed at a special conference next month - "without worrying about the perceived implications for my leadership".
Ms Sturgeon said it was a personal decision too, saying: "I am not expecting violins here, but I am a human being as well as a politician. Giving absolutely everything of yourself to this job is the only way to do it. The country deserves nothing less.
"But in truth that can only be done by anyone for so long. For me, it is now in danger of becoming too long."
She added: "To those who do feel shocked or disappointed, or perhaps even a bit angry with me, please... be in no doubt that this is really hard for me.
"My decision comes from a place of duty and of love. Tough love, perhaps, but love nevertheless for my party and above all for the country."
The first minister confirmed she would stay in post until somebody else takes over and remain as an MSP until at least the next Holyrood election.
She said the SNP would announce the process for electing a new leader over the coming days but refused to say who her preferred candidate would be.
'Absolutely gutted'
Members of her party have paid tribute to her time in office, with SNP president Michael Russell thanking her for her "extraordinary and brilliant leadership of her party and country".
The SNP's Westminster leader, Stephen Flynn, called her an "outstanding" politician and a "dedicated public servant" that would be "sorely missed".