Whatever your thoughts on the SNP, the Union or indeed Scotland, it cannot be denied that Nicola Sturgeon will leave a permanent mark on Britain’s political landscape. Whether that mark is good or bad will no doubt be the focus of intense debate for years to come.
Making her 286th and final First Minister’s Questions closing speech this week, the usually immovable First Minister was close to tears. This resignation is to her likely bittersweet given she did not end up achieving Scottish independence. And this raises the question: after holding the first minister position for eight years, what actually changed in that time?
Soon after she became first minister in 2014, Sturgeon went on to secure a landslide victory in the 2015 general election, where the SNP went from six seats to 56. She created a gender-balanced cabinet and under her leadership the number of women working for the Scottish government increased until they equalled, and then overtook, the number of men.
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