Nicola Sturgeon is a British politician and the first minister of Scotland. She also leads the Scottish National Party, which won 56 of Scotland’s 59 seats in the House of Commons in the 2015 election. At the age of 16, seeing the poverty and deprivation around her, she became involved in opposing the Conservative government of Margaret Thatcher and became a member of the Scottish National Party. After studying law at the University of Glasgow and starting her career as a solicitor in the city, she became a member of the Scottish Parliament at the age of 29.
In 2014, while Alex Salmond was still the leader of the Scottish National Party, Sturgeon was put in charge of holding a referendum on Scottish independence from Britain. But when the results of the referendum did not go according to the wishes of the Scottish National Party, Alex Salmond resigned from the party and was replaced by Nicola Sturgeon.
British Propaganda Against Sturgeon
Daily Mail calls the Scottish National Party leader “The Most Dangerous Woman In Britain”. The Daily Mail calls her “A tough, uncompromising woman with a fierce, combative intelligence and an ever fiercer ambition”.
According to the German newspaper “De Welt“, after the election victory for the supporters of Scottish independence in the parliamentary elections in Scotland, the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wrote a letter to Nicolas Sturgeon, the first Minister of Scotland and the winner of the election. He emphasised further cooperation with the separatist region. Johnson emphasised that it was his heartfelt belief that the interests of the British people, and in particular the people of Scotland, would be better served in further cooperation. Johnson’s message implies that Sturgeon’s efforts for the independence of Scotland are a threat to the interests of the Scottish people. However, the Scottish National Party is working towards a free Scotland, in which only Scottish people decide for their own future.
According to The Independent, Sturgeon wrote in a message to Johnson on Monday 2 August 2021 that she was eager to meet with him during his visit to Scotland to discuss the outbreak of the coronavirus. However, Johnson declined the invitation of the Scottish first minister and replied that he would subsequently hold multilateral meetings with the first ministers of the various regions in Britain. Johnson’s refusal of the invitation can be considered as humiliating for Sturgeon.
Sturgeon’s Admirable Resistance
Scottish leader Nicolas Sturgeon is insisting that another independence referendum would be inevitable after her party’s victory. Boris Johnson strongly opposes the referendum, saying that it was resolved in 2014, when Scots voted 55% against 45% in favour of independence. According to Reuters, “Johnson opted for a blunt message, saying independence supporters had their chance in 2014 in a vote they had agreed at the time was ‘a once-in-a-generation event’”.
But pro-independence parties won a majority in the Scottish Parliament in the last election, and Sturgeon said it would force her to pursue plans for a second referendum again after the Covid crisis.
Sturgeon’s press office said in a statement after her telephone conversation with Johnson:
“The First Minister reiterated her intention to ensure that the Scottish people can decide their own destiny in the future.”
Sturgeon emphasised that the issue of the referendum is now only a matter of when it will take place, not a matter of if. “You will not succeed in this,” Sturgeon told Boris Johnson. “Only Scottish people can decide on the future of Scotland.”
Nicola Sturgeon has said that the decision on the timing of the referendum is the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament and not Boris Johnson or any of the politicians in Westminster. Scottish First Minister Nicholas Sturgeon has announced that if London continued to block a second independence referendum, the Scots would resort to whatever option was necessary.
The Scottish National Party insists that Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic have fundamentally changed the situation and strengthened the Scottish people’s motivation for independence. As cited in the Guardian, Sturgeon warns Johnson about using Trump tactics. Sturgeon has stated that “Refusing to respect the will of voters did not worked for the former president of the US Donald Trump, and if Johnson follows the same route as Donald Trump, it would be just as catastrophic for him.” She has also added that “This is a terrible look for any prime minister. In addition, this measure did not work for Donald Trump and will not work for Boris Johnson. The future of Scotland must be determined and will be determined by the people of Scotland.”
Sturgeon: A National Leader
The strategy of destroying Sturgeon and questioning her in the British media has not been successful.
Scottish First Minister and SNP Leader Nicholas Sturgeon has become one of the region’s most popular politicians in recent years. She has repeatedly mentioned after Brexit was finalised that a new independence referendum was on its way. The issue of independence has never been forgotten in these seven years.
Immediately after the British people voted yes to the referendum on the country’s exit from the European Union in 2016, the first minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, openly announced the need for a second independence referendum. Sturgeon, as a heroine and a popular leader, is arguing that it is the right of the Scottish people to rebuild their country’s economy and shape its position in the world independent of the authority in Westminster.
