Nicola Sturgeon has firmly shut down any speculation about her political future, insisting she remains committed to the SNP despite her recent criticism of the party she once led.
The former first minister made her position clear as she ruled out any possibility of joining the Scottish Greens, telling anyone who had been wondering that she is SNP to her core and has no intention of changing that.
The comments came alongside a new foreword Sturgeon wrote for her book, in which she did not hold back on her views about how the SNP handled its recent election campaign. The foreword raised eyebrows given its critical tone, prompting questions about just how far her relationship with the party had strained since she stepped down as first minister.
Sturgeon resigned as SNP leader and first minister back in February 2023 after more than eight years in charge, a tenure that made her one of the most recognisable political figures in Scottish history. Since leaving office she has largely stayed out of the day to day political fray, but her book foreword showed she has not gone quiet entirely.
Her criticism of the SNP campaign will sting for current party leadership, particularly given the difficult period the SNP has been navigating. The party suffered significant losses at the UK general election, with Labour making major gains across Scotland and the SNP seeing its Westminster representation dramatically reduced from the dominance it had enjoyed for nearly a decade.
Despite that, Sturgeon appears to have no interest in walking away from the party altogether. Her message was straightforward enough. She may have issues with how things have been run, but that does not mean she is about to jump ship to the Greens or anyone else.
The Scottish Greens themselves have been going through their own turbulent stretch. The party ended its power sharing arrangement with the SNP government, known as the Bute House Agreement, in April 2024. Co-leaders Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater had been ministers under that deal, giving the Greens a taste of government for the first time. Since the split the two parties have had a noticeably frostier relationship.
Given all that background, the idea of Sturgeon crossing over to the Greens was always going to be a stretch, but politics has surprised people before and the question was clearly floating around enough that she felt the need to address it directly.
For the SNP, Sturgeon remains a complicated figure. She is still hugely popular with a significant chunk of the party membership and the wider independence movement, but her public criticism is not the kind of thing current leader John Swinney will be brushing off easily. Swinney has been trying to steady the ship after a bruising year, and having his predecessor take aim at campaign strategy in a published foreword adds another layer of pressure.
Sturgeon has always been a disciplined political operator though, and the fact she is being this open about her concerns while simultaneously reaffirming her SNP loyalty suggests she is trying to push for change from within rather than cause a full blown rupture.
Whether the party listens is another matter. The SNP faces a Scottish Parliament election in 2026 and the stakes could not be much higher. Labour is riding high in Scotland right now and the SNP will need to find a way to reconnect with voters who drifted away. Having a former first minister publicly questioning your campaign approach is not ideal preparation, but it might just be the kind of honest conversation the party needs to have.
Aye well she would say that wouldn’t she. Still reckon she’d jump ship if it suited her, they all do eventually. Politics is just one big game of musical chairs.