Nicola Sturgeon admits blundering over trans rights meltdown as she dismisses SNP’s woes as ‘growing pains’ in interview on ITV’s Loose Women – and says she WON’T be going on Strictly Come Dancing or I’m A Celeb after quitting

• Nicola Sturgeon discussed her impending departure on ITV’s Loose Women  
• Sturgeon’s husband, Peter Murrell, forced to quit as party CEO at the weekend
• His interim replacement admitted the nationalists were in a ‘tremendous mess’

Nicola Sturgeon admitted blundering over the trans rights meltdown today – but dismissed the SNP’s woes as ‘growing pains’.

In an interview on ITV’s Loose Women, the outgoing First Minister said she took responsibility for failing to generate a ‘rational debate’ about her government’s abortive gender identity overhaul. 

But she insisted the shambles – which saw Westminster step in to block the move amid fury that a trans rapist had been sent to a women’s prison – was not the reason she resigned.

Ms Sturgeon also stressed she will not be going on Strictly Come Dancing or I’m A Celeb now she is stepping down from frontline politics.

Ms Sturgeon has been kicking off her last week in office with a series of interviews and a speech in London, 400 miles from chaos enveloping the SNP at Holyrood over how her successor is chosen. 

Ms Sturgeon’s husband, Peter Murrell, was forced to quit as party chief executive at the weekend over a row over the release of party membership figures. 

And his interim replacement, party president Mike Russell, admitted the nationalists were in a ‘tremendous mess’, just a week before the new First Minister is due to be unveiled on March 27.

Speaking to Janet Street-Porter (centre), Ruth Langsford, Gloria Hunniford (right) and Coleen Nolan on the ITV show this lunchtime, Nicola Sturgeon (left) warned the SNP not to ‘throw the baby out with the bathwater’ as it moves on from her leadership

Ms Sturgeon said she took responsibility for failing to generate a ‘rational debate’ about her government’s abortive gender identity overhaul

Ms Sturgeon was being grilled by the panel including Langsford (left) and Nolan (second from left)

Ms Sturgeon’s husband, Peter Murrell, was forced to quit as party chief executive at the weekend over a row over the release of party membership figures.

Speaking to Janet Street-Porter, Ruth Langsford, Gloria Hunniford and Coleen Nolan on the ITV show this lunchtime, Ms Sturgeon warned the SNP not to ‘throw the baby out with the bathwater’ as it moves on from her leadership.

On the SNP’s loss of 30,000 members in recent years, she said: ‘Perspective is important in these things.

‘We don’t know this for sure – because other parties in Scotland don’t tell us what their membership figures are – but on the most recent assessments, even with that decline, the SNP has more members in Scotland than all of the other parties combined.

‘We are the only mass membership party in the country.’

Ms Sturgeon admitted the SNP had ‘mishandled’ questions about its membership, but added: ‘These things are all opportunities to learn.’

She denied the row over her Gender Recognition Bill had been another reason behind her resignation, saying she was ‘used to dealing with difficult issues’ during her long period in power.

‘I regret the fact we weren’t able – and I take my share of responsibilty for this as leader of the country – we weren’t able to get that debate into a more rational space,’ she said.

‘I do regret that, I don’t regret the legislation that I think was right – many other countries have done it already.

‘That wasn’t the issue, I just think I personally have been in this position for such a period that I know I need to do something differently.

‘I can’t give it everything it deserves for too much longer.’

Ms Sturgeon insisted the SNP was ‘not in a mess’ amid the divisive contest to elect her successor and a row over the party’s membership numbers.

‘The SNP’s not in a mess, it’s going through some growing pains right now. They are necessary but difficult,’ she said.

‘Usually parties go through a process like this when they’ve been kicked out by the voters.

‘That’s not the position the SNP is in. I’ve won, my party rather, has won eight elections in my eight years as leader. So we’re actually in a quite strong position.’

After viewing a clip of her resignation speech from last month, Ms Sturgeon told ITV’s Loose Women she was ‘utterly mortified’ that she was wearing the same red jacket while appearing on today’s programme.

‘Have I got time to go and change?,’ the First Minister asked the panel, adding: ‘My mother will give me some talking to.’

Ms Sturgeon admitted it had ‘probably not’ sunk in that she would be leaving her role in just a week’s time.

‘It’s a big, big change and I think it will take a while for me to adapt to a very different way of living,’ she said.

‘There’s been a mix of emotions in the last two weeks. But the thing I can say with no hesitation is that I’ve never doubted I’ve taken the right decision.’

Ms Sturgeon revealed she had been coming to the decision to quit ‘subconsciously’ since late last year.

She added: ‘I remember watching – and it’s very different so I’m not comparing the two situations at all – the New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern make her statement.

‘And I remember thinking ‘I wish that was me’. I think that’s when it went from the subconscious to the conscious. I then realised it was the right time for me.

‘But then you go through that process of (thinking): ‘Am I letting other people down? Is it wrong for my party or the country?’.

‘It took me a bit longer to decide, ‘actually I think it’s the right time for everybody’.’

Earlier, Mr Russell told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme he has been brought in to ‘steady the ship’ and will focus on doing that for the next week.

Asked what has gone wrong, Mr Russell told the BBC: ‘A whole host of things quite clearly.

‘But my focus as I said yesterday and I’m saying again today, is to ensure we get to next Monday to the declaration of the (leadership) result in a much better form and do it in an orderly fashion and that’s what I’m going to be doing this week: making sure that we focus on the important things for the people of Scotland actually because we have a duty to the people of Scotland.

‘The person that the party selects will be the party’s nominee for First Minister and we’ve got to get this right and we’ve got to do it in the proper way, so that’s the focus just now.

‘I think then the new leader needs to look very closely at a whole range of issues, including the organisation of party HQ, and also the fact that we haven’t had a leadership election in 19 years and I have to say it shows.’

Mr Murrell quit with immediate effect on Saturday following a row over the party’s membership numbers.

Mr Murrell said he took responsibility after misleading information was briefed to the media over membership numbers, but said there was no ‘intent to mislead’.

The party this week confirmed there had been a big drop in membership numbers.

His departure came shortly after that of media chief Murray Foote, who said there had been a ‘serious impediment’ to his role. 

And last week, two of the SNP leader candidates to succeed Ms Sturgeon as first minister: Kate Forbes and Ash Regan, questioned the independence of the election process.

Ms Forbes said she has confidence in the process to find a new leader.

Asked whether she would like the leadership contest to be rerun, Kate Forbes told BBC Radio Scotland: ‘Personally, no. I personally would like us to get to the end which is next week.’

During the interview, Ms Forbes was also asked what she makes about the drop in SNP membership, which has fallen by more than 30,000 in the past two years.

SNP hopeful Kate Forbes said she has confidence in the process to find a new leader

Party president Mike Russell admitted the nationalists were in a ‘tremendous mess’, just a week before the new First Minister is due to be unveiled.

She said: ‘I think that absolutely demonstrates that this needs to be a change election.’

On Sunday Ms Forbes said decisions in the SNP are being taken by too few people.

She is on maternity leave from her government role as Finance Secretary, and is facing Health Secretary Humza Yousaf and former community safety minister Ash Regan in the contest.

She told the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg: ‘I think at the heart of this is the fact that the decisions within the SNP have been taken by too few people.

‘I think that’s well recognised across the political domain.

‘SNP members want to know that our institution is democratic, that they can influence it, that they can shape policy.’

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