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The Herald Scotland
11-08-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Five quick takeaways from Nicola Sturgeon's new memoir
The story centred on Stewart Hosie, then deputy leader of the SNP, who was exposed for having an affair with a Westminster-based journalist. It later emerged the same woman had previously been involved with Angus MacNeil, the SNP MP for the Western Isles. Ms Sturgeon writes that while she is 'ultra-liberal on matters of sex and relationships', she was 'furious on behalf of Shona [Robison]', Hosie's wife and one of her closest friends. Ms Robison, then Health Secretary, was 'humiliated' and spent much of the day tearfully in Ms Sturgeon's office. 'I did not speak to Stewart for days, even though he was my deputy.' The drama reignited memories of a 2007 controversy involving Mr MacNeil and two teenage girls and, according to Ms Sturgeon, showed the dangers of political loyalty blinding judgment. David Mundell's mother feared Sturgeon 'might eat him alive' When she was Deputy First Minister, Ms Sturgeon met David Mundell, then a UK Government Scotland Office minister, ahead of the independence referendum. During their meeting, Mr Mundell's mobile phone rang — it was his mother, calling to check he was okay. He explained she had been worried Sturgeon 'might eat him alive'. Ms Sturgeon writes that the moment made her realise 'my reputation exceeded my self-confidence by a considerable margin'. The meeting, she says, was constructive, and she left confident an agreement could be reached, though not 'on any terms'. Boris Johnson asked if fiscal autonomy would 'buy off' SNP Nicola Sturgeon has revealed Boris Johnson once asked her whether granting Scotland full fiscal autonomy would be enough to 'buy off' the SNP. In a conversation in May 2015, after a VE Day service at Westminster Abbey, Mr Johnson — then still Mayor of London but newly returned to the Commons — walked with her to a post-service reception as crowds shouted 'Boris' and 'Nicola'. Part of their chat 'stuck with me so strongly', Ms Sturgeon writes, that she recalls it 'almost verbatim'. Mr Johnson asked: 'What would it take to buy you lot in the SNP off? Would full fiscal autonomy shut you up?' Ms Sturgeon says she told him that, on the right terms, fiscal autonomy 'would certainly be welcome' and 'a step in the right direction' — but would not 'buy us off' because 'we believed in independence'. She adds: 'I could sense him struggling to process this strange notion of politicians who actually believed in something.' Former first minister wants to write fiction and live abroad — briefly After attending multiple book festivals and writing her memoir, Nicola Sturgeon says she wants to pursue a career as a writer, possibly moving beyond factual and political work. In the final pages of her book, she writes: 'I want to write more, maybe even fiction.' She also claims she is 'determined to see the world', adding: 'I might live outside of Scotland for a period. A perspective shift would be good for me.' However, she says she cannot imagine staying away for 'very long' as 'Scotland is where I belong'. Corbyn's 'sneering superiority' rubbed her the wrong way Nicola Sturgeon has previously spoken about her dislike for former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. In her memoir, she appears to go further. About Mr Corbyn, she writes: 'He exuded the same aura of aloofness and sneering superiority that I have detected in many men on the far left over the years, particularly around women.'
Scotsman
03-05-2025
- Business
- Scotsman
Women in business: Scotland Office minister Kirsty McNeill to lead all-female trade mission
Watch more of our videos on and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565 Visit Shots! now An all-female trade mission from Scotland will head for Spain in a bid to boost exports by women-led companies. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The visit, planned for Madrid in June, will be led by UK Government Scotland Office minister Kirsty McNeill as part of the Brand Scotland drive to sell Scotland's unique strengths around the world and promote Scottish goods and services to new markets. The aim is create more export opportunities for female-led businesses after research found that trade in Scotland could increase by more than £10 billion if women's companies were exporting at the same rate as firms led by men. KIrsty McNeill hosted a roundtable meeting of women business leaders ahead of the trade mission in June | supplied Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Ms McNeill hosted a gathering of female business leaders from across Scotland last week, which brought together women from across the technology, sustainability, clean energy and beauty sectors, as well as representatives of the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, the Confederation of British Industry and Women's Enterprise Scotland. Ms McNeill said: "From science and sustainability to culture and financial services, we're amongst the best in the world - and by selling Scotland globally, we can unlock jobs and investment, an essential part of our Plan for Change. 'It's crucial that I hear from Scottish businesswomen about the barriers they face, find out what we can do to help, and demonstrate how Scottish companies can really benefit from having direct informal access like this to the UK's vast global network of trade expertise. By harnessing the combined resources of the Scotland Office, the Foreign Office and Department for Business and Trade, we can create significant opportunities for women entrepreneurs. "We're already seeing positive results from championing Brand Scotland internationally and I'm committed to unlocking more global opportunities for Scottish women in business." Challenges they discussed included how businesses can access finance and investment, overcome export barriers, and tackle market access issues that disproportionately affect women-led business.
