London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Oct 27, 2025

Nicola Sturgeon defends her record at final FMQs

Nicola Sturgeon defends her record at final FMQs

Nicola Sturgeon has defended her record in government during her final First Minister's Questions.

The first minister was accused of failures on education, drug deaths, NHS waiting lists and ferries in her 286th weekly session.

Ms Sturgeon said she was "very proud" of her party's eight election wins and policies including the Scottish Child Payment and progressive income tax.

However she said her successor would have a tough job ahead.

The winner of the contest to succeed Ms Sturgeon as SNP leader will be revealed on Monday afternoon.

They will then face a vote in the Scottish Parliament the next day before being confirmed as first minister.


'Truth of her legacy'


Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross opened the session by accusing the SNP of having "lied" to the press over its membership numbers.

The party had ridiculed a newspaper report that it had lost 30,000 members since December 2021 - but was later forced to admit its membership had fallen from 104,000 to 72,000 over that time. The party had seen its membership surge to a peak of about 125,000 by 2019 under Ms Sturgeon's leadership.

The row saw Peter Murrell - Ms Sturgeon's husband - quit as the party's chief executive, with SNP media chief Murray Foote also resigning.

Nicola Sturgeon took part in her 286th and final FMQs


Amid rowdy scenes in the Holyrood chamber, Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone issued several pleas for members to be heard, adding: "We do not use the word 'lie' in this chamber."

Ms Sturgeon said she would "not take lectures" from the Conservatives about honesty in the same week Boris Johnson was being questioned about Partygate - and urged the Scottish Tories to release their own membership figures.

Mr Ross also questioned Ms Sturgeon's record in government, saying Scottish schools have plummeted in league tables and the attainment gap has not been closed.

He pointed to the country having highest rate of drug deaths in Europe, lengthy NHS waiting lists and a "damning report" on ferries that are currently five years late and massively over-budget.

The first minister has "ignored Scotland's priorities in favour of her obsession with independence. Isn't that the truth of her legacy?" he added.

Nicola Sturgeon at her first FMQs in 2014 flanked by John Swinney, Shona Robison and Mike Russell


Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar also attacked the outgoing first minister's record, claiming that there was not a single Scottish institution that has been left stronger after Ms Sturgeon's eight years in office.

But Ms Sturgeon said she was proud of policies from the Scottish Child Payment and the baby box scheme to the abolishment of prescription charges and free period products - the campaign for which was led by Labour's Monica Lennon.

The first minister said the NHS had received record funding and that Scotland was leading the way on climate change.

"I could go on, and on, and on, but I'm not going to because this is my last session of First Minister's Questions," she said.

She added: "I am proud of the record of government that I have led through some of the toughest times Scotland has faced in recent history. But ultimately the only people who will cast a verdict on the record of my or future government are the people of Scotland.

"In my time as first minister they have had eight opportunities to do that and on each of these eight opportunities they have voted for me, the SNP and my government. That is a record I'm very proud to stand on.

"Does my successor have a tough job? Of course, because we live in tough times but I've got confidence that whoever my successor turns out to be, they will continue to build on that record and they will continue to retain the trust of the Scottish people."

Ms Sturgeon had served as a cabinet minister and deputy first minister under her predecessor Alex Salmond since 2007.

When the Scottish electorate rejected independence by 55% to 45% in September 2014 Mr Salmond resigned, leading to Ms Sturgeon taking the role unopposed.

She was formally sworn in on 20 November that year, after which she held her first FMQs.


Her last official engagement as first minister will be on Friday.

Ms Sturgeon has not officially backed any of the candidates to replace her, but Health Secretary Humza Yousaf is widely assumed to be her preferred choice.

Mr Yousaf was the only one of the three leadership candidates to attend Ms Sturgeon's final FMQs, with Ash Regan and Kate Forbes both being absent from the chamber.

The leadership contest has exposed deep divisions within the SNP, with both Ms Forbes and Ms Regan casting doubt over the fairness and transparency of the election process.

Interim chief executive Mike Russell said there was "tremendous mess" in the SNP - which Ms Sturgeon denied when she appeared to the Loose Women programme on Monday.

She insisted that the party was merely going through "growing pains" which she said were "necessary but difficult".

She also said it was important for the party not to "throw the baby out with the bath water" and lose things that have made them successful in the past.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Announces £1.08 Billion Budget for Offshore Wind Auction to Boost 2030 Capacity
UK Seeks Steel Alliance with EU and US to Counter China’s Over-Capacity
UK Struggles to Balance China as Both Strategic Threat and Valued Trading Partner
Argentina’s Markets Surge as Milei’s Party Secures Major Win
British Journalist Sami Hamdi Detained by U.S. Authorities After Visa Revocation Amid Israel-Gaza Commentary
King Charles Unveils UK’s First LGBT+ Armed Forces Memorial at National Memorial Arboretum
At ninety-two and re-elected: Paul Biya secures eighth term in Cameroon amid unrest
Racist Incidents Against UK Nurses Surge by 55%
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Cites Shared Concerns With Trump Administration as Foundation for Early US-UK Trade Deal
Essentra plc: A Closer Look at a UK ‘Penny Stock’ Opportunity Amid Market Weakness
U.S. and China Near Deal to Avert Rare-Earth Export Controls Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit
Justin time: Justin Herbert Shields Madison Beer with Impressive Reflex at Lakers Game
Russia’s President Putin Declares Burevestnik Nuclear Cruise Missile Ready for Deployment
Giuffre’s Memoir Alleges Maxwell Claimed Sexual Act with Clooney
House Republicans Move to Strip NYC Mayoral Front-Runner Zohran Mamdani of U.S. Citizenship
Record-High Spoiled Ballots Signal Voter Discontent in Ireland’s 2025 Presidential Election
Philippines’ Taal Volcano Erupts Overnight with 2.4 km Ash Plume
Albania’s Virtual AI 'Minister' Diella Set to 'Birth' Eighty-Three Digital Assistants for MPs
Tesla Unveils Vision for Optimus V3 as ‘Biggest Product of All Time’, Including Surgical Capabilities
Francis Ford Coppola Auctions Luxury Watches After Self-Financed Film Flop
Convicted Sex Offender Mistakenly Freed by UK Prison Service Arrested in London
United States and China Begin Constructive Trade Negotiations Ahead of Trump–Xi Summit
U.S. Treasury Sanctions Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro over Drug-Trafficking Allegations
Miss USA Crowns Nebraska’s Audrey Eckert Amid Leadership Overhaul
‘I Am Not Done’: Kamala Harris Signals Possible 2028 White House Run
NBA Faces Integrity Crisis After Mass Arrests in Gambling Scandal
Swift Heist at the Louvre Sees Eight French Crown Jewels Stolen in Under Seven Minutes
U.S. Halts Trade Talks with Canada After Ontario Ad Using Reagan Voice Triggers Diplomatic Fallout
Microsoft AI CEO: ‘We’re making an AI that you can trust your kids to use’ — but can Microsoft rebuild its own trust before fixing the industry’s?
China and Russia Deploy Seductive Espionage Networks to Infiltrate U.S. Tech Sector
Apple’s ‘iPhone Air’ Collapses After One Month — Another Major Misstep for the Tech Giant
Graham Potter Begins New Chapter as Sweden Head Coach on Short-Term Deal
Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa Alleges Poison Plot via Chocolate and Jam
Lakestar to Halt External Fundraising as Investor in Revolut and Spotify
U.S. Innovation Ranking Under Scrutiny as China Leads Output Outputs but Ranks 10th
Three Men Arrested in London on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
×