Nicola Sturgeon set to resign as Scottish first minister, Sky News reports

Nicola Sturgeon is set to resign as Scottish first minister, Sky News reported, citing a senior government official.

The Scottish government will hold a press conference at 11 a.m. London time.

Sturgeon has been Scotland’s longest-serving first minister, acting in the position and as leader of the Scottish National Party since 2014. She is the first woman to hold the Scottish leadership post.

In recent months, she has faced criticism and praise over legislative reform led by the SNP, which would make it easier for people to change their legal gender and lower the age at which they can do so, from 18 to 16.

Sturgeon has come under pressure to clarify her stance on transgender women being jailed in women’s prisons, after safety concerns were raised over a case in Scotland.

Sturgeon was deputy leader of the SNP during the 2014 referendum, in which 55.3% of poll goers voted against Scotland breaking away from the United Kingdom. She replaced Alex Salmond as party leader and became First Minster of Scotland, following the independence vote.

The SNP has held a majority in the Scottish parliament — known as Holyrood — since 2011.

Sturgeon has become a well-known figure in British politics, pushing for a second independence poll, after many Scots voted against the proposals of the Brexit vote of 2016. In November, the U.K.’s highest court ruled that any second Scottish independence vote would have to be approved by the U.K. government, which does not support the motion.

Under the U.K. policy of devolution, the Scottish parliament controls domestic issues including education, health, justice, housing and transport. It also set its own lockdown and border policies during the Covid-19 pandemic.

Stewart McDonald, a SNP member of parliament, said on Twitter, “Nicola Sturgeon is the finest public servant of the devolution age. Her public service, personal resilience and commitment to Scotland is unmatched, and she has served our party unlike anyone else. She will be an enormous loss as First Minister and SNP leader.”