Nicola Sturgeon makes history on 22th of May by becoming Scotland’s longest-serving first minister.
She will have been in office for 2,744 days since being sworn in on 20 November 2014, overtaking her predecessor, Alex Salmond. Her premiership got off to a spectacular start with an appearance in front of 12,000 independence supporters at Glasgow’s Hydro arena and SNP membership soaring by 75,000. More than seven years on, polls still find her to be the most popular political leader in the UK while her party dominated this month’s local government elections after 15 years in power. She has also survived a number of controversies and scandals, some of which, she has admitted, threatened her future as leader.
Voters in Scotland are not wholly uncritical of how the Scottish Government has handled the coronavirus pandemic as one of its achievements.
However, many still feel it is performing better than the UK government – with potential implications for the debate about independence. What may particularly worry the UK Government is that, even among those who voted No in the 2014 independence referendum, the Scottish Government and Nicola Sturgeon are rated more highly than the UK Government and Boris Johnson. No less than 64% of No voters believe the Scottish Government has handled the pandemic well, while 65% say the same of Nicola Sturgeon. In contrast, just 31% believe the UK Government has addressed the pandemic well, and only 26% say the same of Boris Johnson.
Polls suggest that while Ms Sturgeon has fallen from dizzyingly high approval ratings at the height of the emergency, she remains much more popular in Scotland than Mr Johnson.
Throughout the pandemic, for every 100,000 people living in Scotland, 256 died with Covid listed on the death certificate, according to the Office for National Statistics. That set of figures seems to suggest Scotland outperformed Wales and England but not Northern Ireland.
Sturgeon once explained her idea on independence at the height of the pandemic by asking, “Who do we want to be in the driving seat of shaping Scotland’s future?” “The Scottish Government has not got everything right, far from it. But I doubt there are many people in Scotland who would have wanted Westminster to be more in charge of our pandemic response.” Sturgeon was referring to Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s approach to the coronavirus, which has included a botched testing plan and repeated policy U-turns. With more than 63,000 deaths, the UK had the highest toll in Europe in the early months of the pandemic.
One of the most important achievements by Sturgeon during her service as a Health Secretary was the campaign to introduce a minimum unit price for alcohol, playing a key role in tackling Scotland’s unhealthy relationship with drink. Income tax policy was another achievement as a key feature of the annual Scottish budget. She has used these new powers to introduce a fairer income tax policy – with most people paying less tax than they would south of the border – while continuing to raise revenue to support investment in the economy and public services.
The SNP with Sturgeon at the helm lists its achievements as follows:
- Free Tuition –While students in England face tuition fees up to £27,750, Scottish students receive university tuition for free, and always will under the SNP.
- Record High Health Funding –We’ve invested over £16 billion in our health and care portfolio, with resource funding up by over 60% under the SNP.
- Care for All –We extended free personal and nursing care to everyone who needs it, regardless of age and we’re now taking steps towards a transformative National Care Service.
- Free Prescriptions –We have abolished NHS prescription charges in Scotland, which are now £9.35 per item south of the border.
- NHS Staffing at a Record High –Since the SNP took office, there are 25,000 more doctors, nurses and other staff working in Scotland’s NHS, an increase of over 20%.
- The Latest Survey – Results show that 15.8% of investors now rate Scotland as the UK’s most attractive Foreign Direct Investment location, up 15% from last year. Scotland has also more than doubled its rating since the pre-pandemic period. Back in 2019, 7% of investors rated Scotland as the top destination.
- Free NHS Dental Care for the Under-26 –Scotland is the only part of the UK without dental fees for young people – and we’re scrapping fees for everyone by the end of this Parliament.
- Eradicating Fuel Poverty –Over the last 8 years, we have spent £1 billion on supporting people in fuel poverty and making their homes more energy efficient – and we have published the Fuel Poverty Strategy to eradicate fuel poverty by 2040.
- World-Leading Minimum Alcohol Unit Pricing –Scotland was the first country in the world to implement minimum unit pricing, earning praise from experts and helping to reduce alcohol-related deaths.
- New, Progressive Income Tax System –Introduced under the SNP, it ensures that the majority (54%) of Scottish taxpayers pay less than elsewhere in the UK in 2021-22 – supporting stronger public services while safeguarding those on lower incomes.
The SNP and Nicola Sturgeon have come out on top with voters in a new poll which shows half of Scots are happy with the job the First Minister is doing. Experts look at her achievements in office, how it will be viewed by history and what the future might hold. According to a report by Fraser of Allander last year, renewable energy supports around 23,000 jobs in Scotland with an economic output of £5 billion a year. It might seem remarkable or even extraordinary that the SNP remains the most popular party in Scotland after 15 years in power, now more than half of that time under Sturgeon.
Thank you for publishing this and I just wish that the media in Britain but particularly in Scotland were as objective and as fair regarding the FM as you have been here.
Thank you.