Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s longest serving prime minister, resigned this morning. Without her, however, the country’s fight for independence will continue unabated.
In a sudden and unexpected move, Scottish prime minister Nicola Sturgeon resigned on Wednesday morning. Later this afternoon, the resignation will be made official by a speech from Edinburgh.
Most likely, Sturgeon will stay in power until a suitable successor is appointed, acting only on ordinary matters until then.
Nicola Sturgeon has been the longest serving Scottish prime minister, with a tenure spanning almost nine years. She rose as PM in 2014 following the failed independence referendum and her predecessor’s, Alex Salmond, resignation. She was also the first woman Scottish prime minister.
Her party, the Scottish National Party (SNP) still holds large popular support, and is the main advocate for Scotland’s independence from the United Kingdom. Surgeon’s resignation is just the last of a long political crisis that is gripping the UK.
The independence referendum in 2014 preceded by just 2 years the Brexit vote, which plunged the whole UK in times of unprecedented crisis. Many Scottish nationals believe they are entitled to another independence referendum, as their large “Remain” preference for Brexit has been basically overruled by England’s votes.
Nicola Sturgeon was the face of the Scottish independence fight. She has served alongside five British prime ministers, constantly fighting for her country’s freedom.
Her time, however, is out.
A gender crisis
The reason for Sturgeon’s resignation will not be fully clear until this afternoon. However, it probably has to do with the crisis over gender rights that has inflamed the Scottish Parliament.
Back in December 2022, SNP passed a bill on gender rights, lowering the age at which people could get gender recognition to 16. The bill also removed the need for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria, an often humiliating process for transgender people.
Passing the bill was a major victory for Sturgeon and her party. However, in an historical precedent, London overruled the bill. Though part of the constitutional rights of the UK’s central government, this is the first time that a democratically voted law of a UK state is rejected by London.
While this raised anger and worries for the Scottish people, it also gave voice to the bill’s critics. The rope finally snapped when Nicola Sturgeon failed to identify the gender of a sex offender who was jailed in a women-only prison.
Isla Bryson, accused of raping two women, was placed in a female-only prison because of his self-declared gender identity.
The failure of Nicola Sturgeon to identify Bryson as either male or female, along with the blow from London’s central government, initiated a political crisis in Edinburgh.
The SNP hopes to use the 2024 general elections as a de-facto “second referendum” for Scottish independence. Its goal is to get over 50% of the popular vote, thereby proving to London that the time for seizure has come.
But no self-inflicted political crisis will help the SNP achieve this goal, which is likely why Nicola Sturgeon had to leave.
