Nicola Sturgeon has stood down as Scottish first minister after eight years.
Speaking at her residence at Bute House in Edinburgh, Ms Sturgeon said she knows the “time is now” for her to stand down.
She is the longest serving – and first female – Scottish first minister.
"This decision is not a reaction to short term pressures."
Outgoing first minister Nicola Sturgeon says her decision to resign comes from a "deeper and longer term assessment"https://t.co/nrwceACxjX
📺 Sky 501, Virgin 602, Freeview 233 and YouTube pic.twitter.com/Cw6cIiVpOq— Sky News (@SkyNews) February 15, 2023
“Since my very first moments in the job I have believed a part of serving well would be to know almost instinctively when the time is right to make way for someone else,” she said.
“In my head and in my heart I know that time is now. That it’s right for me, for my party and my country.”
She added her decision to stand down is not a “reaction to short-term pressures”.
Ms Sturgeon has suffered a series of political setbacks in recent months as her government sought to push through gender reforms, only for them to be blocked by Westminster.
She has also struggled to deal with the housing of transgender prisoners in women’s facilities after a double rapist was sent to a female jail.
The 52-year-old said she no longer felt she could give the job everything it deserves, and said she felt she had a duty to say so now.
She said leading Scotland through the Covid-19 pandemic was “by far the toughest thing I’ve done”, adding the weight of responsibility was “immense”.
“It’s only very recently I think that I’ve started to comprehend, let alone process, the physical and mental impact of it on me.”
She went on: “If the only question was ‘can I battle on for another few months?’, then the answer is yes, of course I can.
“But if the question is, ‘can I give this job everything it demands and deserves for another year, let alone for the remainder of this parliamentary term – give it every ounce of energy that it needs in the way that I have strived to do every day for the past eight years?’ – the answer honestly is different.
“And as that is my decision, hard though it has been for me to reach it, then given the nature and scale of the challenges the country faces, I have a duty to say so now.”
While acknowledging that serving as Scottish first minister has been a "privilege", she added: “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.
“A first minister is never off-duty, particularly in this day and age there is virtually no privacy. Even ordinary stuff that most people take for granted like going for a coffee with friends or for a walk on your own becomes very difficult.”
Fresh blood
She has instructed her party, the SNP, to begin the process of electing a new leader and will remain in office until her successor is chosen.
Ms Sturgeon added she is “not leaving politics”, stressing she will continue to fight for Scottish independence and will remain on as a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) at least until the next election.
A 2014 Scottish independence referendum saw a majority of Scottish voters opt to remain part of the UK, but following the decision of the UK to leave the EU in 2018, Scottish nationalists have renewed their efforts to secure another independence vote.
Ms Sturgeon added that her standing down as first minister would “free” the SNP to take a decision on how best to pursue independence “without worrying about the perceived implications for my leadership”.
“We are at a critical moment. The blocking of our referendum as the accepted constitutional route to independence is a democratic outrage.
“My preference of using the next Westminster election as a de facto referendum is well known.”
But she added: “I have always been clear that decision must be taken by the SNP collectively, not by me alone, but I know my party well enough to understand that my view as leader would carry enormous, probably decisive, weight, when our conference meets next month.
“And I cannot in good conscience ask the party to choose an option based on my judgment whilst not being convinced that I would be there as leader to see it through.
“By making my decision clear now, I free the SNP to choose the path it believes to be the right one without worrying about the perceived implications for my leadership.”
Answering questions from journalists following her speech, Ms Sturgeon said she would not give an opinion on who she wanted to succeed her as SNP leader.
Nicola Sturgeon is the finest First Minster Scotland has ever had, and the finest friend anyone could hope for.
When Scotland wins independence, she will have been its architect and builder. She has laid the foundations we all now stand on.
We owe it to her to finish the job.— Ian Blackford 🇺🇦🏴 (@Ianblackford_MP) February 15, 2023
News of Ms Sturgeon's decision to step down from her role was met with shock on Wednesday morning.
Several political commentators drew a parallel with the sudden resignation last month of Jacinda Ardern as New Zealand’s prime minister.
Responding to the news, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar paid tribute to Ms Sturgeon, whom he worked with through the British Irish Council.
"I always found Nicola a very warm person, articulate and thoughtful, and a very capable politician, who showed huge commitment to her country. She was also a true European.
"I wish Nicola and her family the very best for the future," the Taoiseach said.
Meanwhile the SNP's deputy leader Keith Brown said Ms Sturgeon “has given her working life to the cause of independence”.
“An outstanding Leader,” he tweeted. “The first female and longest serving First Minister. Nicola Sturgeon has given her working life to the cause of independence. Thank you for all you have done, and will do in our campaign to win independence for Scotland.”
Ian Blackford, Scottish MP and former leader of the SNP in Westminster, added Ms Sturgeon is the “finest first minister Scotland has ever had”.
“Nicola Sturgeon is the finest first minister Scotland has ever had, and the finest friend anyone could hope for,” he tweeted.
“When Scotland wins independence, she will have been its architect and builder. She has laid the foundations we all now stand on.
“We owe it to her to finish the job.”
