Where to watch Nicola Sturgeon today as she resigns as SNP leader

Scottish National Party leader expected to say she is standing down

Nicola Sturgeon (Getty)

Nicola Sturgeon is set to resign as first minister of Scotland after eight years in power, according to reports.

Ms Sturgeon, the first woman to hold the office, is due to give a press conference at 11am this morning from Bute House in Edinburgh at which she is expected to announce her departure and trigger a Scottish National Party (SNP) leadership contest.

The Independent will bring you all the latest updates via our dedicated liveblog.

It is not yet clear if she will stand down immediately or continue in the role until a new SNP leader is elected.

BBC chief political correspondent Nick Eardley reported a source close to Ms Sturgeon as saying simply: “She’s had enough.”

Her reign has been mired in controversy in recent months as her government sought to push through gender reforms, only for them to be blocked by the UK government in Westminster.

Recent weeks have also seen her forced to deal with the housing of transgender prisoners in women’s facilities.

Those issues have coincided with a more general decline in her popularity, with one poll by Panelbase this week showing 42 per cent of respondents now believe she should stand down after failing to secure a second referendum on Scottish independence.

Rising to power unopposed after the first independence vote of 2014, Ms Sturgeon took over from Alex Salmond, the mentor with whom she would come into conflict in the years to come over the handling of sexual harassment allegations made against him.