A Overseas Highway tem    rodovia transportando US Route 1 (EUA 1) através de Florida Keys até Key West . Grandes partes dele foram construídas no antigo direito de passagem da Overseas Railroad, a Key West Extension da Florida East Coast Railway . Concluída em 1912, a Overseas Railroad foi fortemente danificada e parcialmente destruída no furacão do Dia do Trabalho de 1935 . A Florida East Coast Railway foi financeiramente incapaz de reconstruir as seções destruídas, então o leito da estrada e as pontes restantes foram vendidos para o estado da Flórida por $ 640.000.

Desde a década de 1950, a Overseas Highway foi remodelada em uma principal rodovia costeira entre as cidades de Miami e Key West, oferecendo aos viajantes uma estrada exótica através de um ambiente de savana tropical e acesso à maior área de recifes de coral no continente americano. . Muitos animais exóticos, como o jacaré americano, o crocodilo americano e o cervo-chave, habitam as ilhas tropicais de Florida Keys.

História

Enquanto a Overseas Highway hoje corre ao longo do antigo direito de passagem da Overseas Railroad, partes da rodovia surgiram anteriormente em um alinhamento diferente, enquanto a ferrovia ainda estava operacional. O conceito de Overseas Highway começou com o Miami Motor Club em 1921. O boom imobiliário da Flórida na década de 1920 estava em andamento e o clube queria atrair turistas para áreas de pesca de fácil acesso, que na época só podiam ser alcançadas de barco ou trem. O boom imobiliário também atraiu interesses imobiliários que buscavam acesso de veículos às chaves superiores, onde havia milhares de acres de terra não desenvolvida. A conclusão da ferrovia provou ainda mais que uma rodovia através das chaves era viável.

A construção da Overseas Highway original, denominada State Road 4A (uma extensão de uma rota que vai de Miami a Homestead ), durou a maior parte de meados da década de 1920. Aberta oficialmente ao tráfego em 25 de janeiro de 1928, a rodovia original existia em dois trechos em sua maior extensão. Um segmento corria do continente via Card Sound Road até Key Largo e se estendia até Lower Matecumbe Key, enquanto um segmento nas chaves inferiores existia de No Name Key a Key West . Um serviço de balsa de automóveis conectou a lacuna de 41 milhas entre Lower Matecumbe e No Name Keys. A State Road 4A corria principalmente ao lado da Overseas Railroad nas chaves superiores, mas nas chaves inferiores, seguia um caminho muito diferente da ferrovia e da rodovia atual. O pouso da balsa em No Name Key estava localizado no final do que hoje é Watson Boulevard, que levava a State Road 4A através de No Name Key e Big Pine Key antes de cruzar para Little Torch Key. Em Little Torch Key, virou para o sul e voltou à ferrovia. Ele continuaria ao longo do lado norte da ferrovia até Upper Sugarloaf Key, onde virou para o sul e correu ao longo da rota atual das County Roads 939 e 939A sobre Lower Sugarloaf Key e Saddlebunch Keys . De Saddlebunch Keys, a State Road 4A cruzou para Geiger Key, continuando ao longo do que hoje é Geiger Road e Boca Chica Road. Em Boca Chica Key, ele seguiu a linha costeira ao sul da pista de pouso da Estação Aérea Naval de Key West até a praia de Boca Chica antes de cruzar para Stock Island. Em Stock Island, seguiu a Maloney Avenue e a MacDonald Avenue, onde se juntou à Overseas Railroad em direção a Key West. A maioria das pontes da State Road 4A em Lower Keys era de madeira e estava em uso no início da década de 1920.

No início da década de 1930, ficou claro que as balsas eram insuficientes para as necessidades de viagem das chaves, e o condado de Monroe e o Departamento de Estradas do Estado começaram a fazer planos para conectar as duas partes da State Road 4A para fazer uma rodovia contínua. Em 1931, as balsas também atenderiam a uma estrada de 13 milhas construída através de Marathon em Vaca Keys com terminais em Hog e Grassy Keys. Em 1933, a legislatura estadual criou a Overseas Road e o Toll Bridge District para buscar financiamento federal para estender as estradas. O financiamento era escasso porque o país estava no meio da Grande Depressão, mas o financiamento viria eventualmente através da Administração Federal de Alívio de Emergência, parte do New Deal do presidente Franklin D. Roosevelt . Centenas de veteranos descontentes da Primeira Guerra Mundial que buscavam o pagamento antecipado de pensões de guerra foram empregados na construção de estradas e pontes como parte de um programa de ajuda do governo.

A construção de uma ponte ligando Lower Matecumbe Key e Long Key já estava em andamento quando o furacão de categoria 5 do Dia do Trabalho atingiu Islamorada em 2 de setembro de 1935. O furacão causou danos generalizados em toda a área e destruiu grande parte da Overseas Railroad nas teclas superiores. Das mais de 400 mortes do furacão, mais da metade eram veteranos e suas famílias. Suas mortes causaram raiva e acusações de má administração que levaram a uma investigação do Congresso. A oeste de Lower Matecumbe Key no Mile Marker 73 na rodovia atual, oito pilares de ponte de concreto e uma pequena ilha dragada são tudo o que resta do trabalho dos veteranos. A ilha dragada é agora conhecida como Veteran's Key e os cais permanecem como uma homenagem aos veteranos com uma placa memorial em Craig Key .

Após o furacão, a Florida East Coast Railway foi financeiramente incapaz de reconstruir as seções danificadas da Overseas Railroad. Aproveitando uma rara oportunidade, o estado comprou todo o direito de passagem da ferrovia e a infraestrutura restante por um preço de $ 640.000. O Overseas Road and Toll Bridge District abandonou seus planos rodoviários originais e fez novos planos para construir a rodovia no antigo leito ferroviário de Lower Matecumbe Key a Little Torch Key, conectando efetivamente os dois segmentos da State Road 4A. As pontes da ferrovia, que resistiram ao furacão e estavam em boas condições, foram reformadas com novas superfícies de concreto de duas pistas de largura para uso automotivo. No caso da ponte ferroviária Bahia Honda, que era uma ponte treliçada, o piso de concreto foi construído sobre as treliças. A conversão das pontes ferroviárias para uso automotivo foi realizada pela Cleary Brothers Construction Co. de West Palm Beach, e toda a rota para Key West foi aberta ao público em 1938.

Partes da estrada tiveram pedágio até 15 de abril de 1954; as cabines de pedágio estavam localizadas em Big Pine Key e Lower Matecumbe Key . Pigeon Key, mais ou menos no meio da Seven Mile Bridge, serviu como sede do "Overseas Road and Toll District". O pedágio para automóveis era de $ 1, mais 25 centavos por passageiro. A rodovia completa do continente para Key West foi oficialmente aberta ao tráfego em 29 de março de 1938 e, após a conclusão, a rota se tornou o segmento mais ao sul da US Route 1, que anteriormente terminava em Miami (State Road 4A permaneceria como uma designação oculta até a renumeração da Florida State Road de 1945, quando a designação oculta passou a ser State Road 5). O presidente Franklin D. Roosevelt percorreu a estrada em 1939.

Nessa época, a Rodovia Ultramarina corria apenas ao longo da antiga rota da ferrovia nas chaves do meio; os segmentos originais da rodovia ainda estavam em uso nas teclas superior e inferior. Quando os Estados Unidos entraram na Segunda Guerra Mundial, a Marinha dos EUA buscou melhorias na rodovia para melhorar seu acesso da Estação Aérea Naval em Boca Chica Key ao continente para fins de segurança nacional. O segmento de chaves inferiores da década de 1920 era menos do que ideal com sua estrada sinuosa e pontes de madeira frágeis. Isso resultou na conclusão do restante da rodovia ao longo das chaves da antiga faixa de domínio da ferrovia, que já era propriedade do estado e era uma rota mais direta com curvas mais suaves que permitiam velocidades mais altas. Também incluída neste projeto estava a construção da rodovia de Florida City a Key Largo na antiga rota ferroviária via Jewfish Creek, que encurtou a rota de Key Largo ao continente em 17 milhas. Os novos alinhamentos foram oficialmente concluídos em 16 de maio de 1944, com o governador da Flórida, Spessard Holland, presidindo as cerimônias de inauguração. A ponte Card Sound original foi fechada após a abertura do alinhamento Jewfish Creek, e seus restos foram posteriormente destruídos por um incêndio (a rota Card Sound seria restaurada como uma rota secundária em 1969 com a abertura da ponte atual). Hoje, alguns segmentos da rodovia original permanecem como estradas secundárias e frontais para a rodovia atual.

A rodovia original através de Key Largo e Tavernier voltaria a fazer parte da Overseas Highway no início dos anos 1970, quando foi expandida para uma rodovia dividida de quatro pistas. Aqui, as faixas no sentido norte correm ao longo da rota da rodovia original e as faixas no sentido sul ao longo da rota da ferrovia, o que é especialmente evidente na área onde a rota se divide em duas ruas de mão única. A ampliação foi o início de um projeto muito maior para reconstruir grande parte da Rodovia Ultramarina, que incluiu a substituição das velhas pontes ferroviárias reaproveitadas por pontes mais modernas; alguns dos quais são capazes de acomodar mais de duas faixas de tráfego. Isso incluiu a Seven Mile Bridge, a Bahia Honda Bridge e a Long Key Bridge (embora essas três pontes originais não estejam mais abertas ao tráfego de veículos, elas foram listadas no Registro Nacional de Lugares Históricos em 1979 e são atualmente usadas para pesca e pedestres tráfego). As pontes mais modernas foram concluídas no início de 1980.

Nos últimos anos, Pigeon Key foi usado pela Universidade de Miami como um laboratório de oceanografia, mas os esforços atuais para restaurar os edifícios da ilha resultaram na criação de um museu ferroviário lá. A mais nova Seven Mile Bridge não tem acesso direto a Pigeon Key; as pessoas que vão até lá devem andar de bicicleta ou caminhar  da Old Seven Mile Bridge de sua extremidade leste em Knight's Key, pegue um ônibus ou um barco para chegar à ilha.

Na cultura popular
Uma das corridas malucas da televisão animada foi The Overseas Hi-Way Race, que foi ao ar pela primeira vez em 28 de dezembro de 1968, na CBS, cobrindo toda a rota real de Key Largo a Key West. Enquanto Long Key foi retratado corretamente, a maioria das outras chaves intermediárias receberam nomes fictícios, e Sombrero Key estava na verdade cinco milhas ao sul da rodovia em águas abertas, de acordo com o mapa Florida Keys -East.

U.S. Route 1
Florida Keys
Florida East Coast Railway

Overseas Highway


10.5 cm leFH 18M (leFH=leichte Feldhaubitze) II. Dünya Savaşı'nda kulanılan Alman yapımı bir obüstür. Silah korumasız ve kalkansızdır. Aynı zamanda kundağı motorlu obüs olan Wespe aracının kullandığı toptur.

Ayrıca bakınız
 Obüsler listesi

Dış bağlantılar
 https://web.archive.org/web/20070311110800/http://www.flamesofwar.com/Article.asp?ArticleID=207

Çekili obüs
Almanya'nın topları

10,5 cm leFH 18M


James Norman Mattis () este un general în rezervă al US Marine Corps (USMC), Secretarul Apărării în Cabinetul Trump începând cu 20 ianuarie 2017.

Din 2007 până în 2010 comandant al US Joint Forces Command și a servit în Personalunion între 2007 și 2009, în același timp, ca Supreme Allied Commander Transformation al NATO.

În perioada august 2010 până în martie 2013 Mattis a fost comandant al US Central Command, cu sediul în Tampa, Florida.

Cariera militară

Controverse

Secretar american al apărării

Medalii
Selecție de decorații, clasate pe baza Order of Precedence of the Military Awards:
 Defense Distinguished Service Medal (2 x)
 Navy Distinguished Service Medal
 Defense Superior Service Medal
 Legion of Merit
 Bronze Star
 Meritorious Service Medal (3 x)
 Navy & Marine Corps Achievement Medal
 Navy Unit Commendation
 Afghanistan Campaign Medal
 Iraq Campaign Medal
 NATO Meritorious Service Medal
 NATO-Medaille der International Security Assistance Force

Note

Legături externe

 General: It's 'fun to shoot some people' / Commandant gives counsel, acknowledges wrong word choice - CNN, 4. Februar 2005.
 Irak: Bombardierte US-Armee eine Hochzeitsfeier? US-General zweifelt an Zeugenberichten - RP-Online 19. Mai 2004.
 'Brawler' general to lead Centcom: US general who once said it was "fun to shoot some people" picked to replace Petraeus. AJ, 9. Juli 2010.

Nașteri în 1950
Decorați cu Bronze Star Medal
Americani în viață
Generali americani
Secretari ai apărării ai Statelor Unite ale Americii

James Mattis


The Buteoninae are a subfamily of birds of prey which consists of medium to large, broad-winged species.

They have large, powerful, hooked beaks for tearing flesh from their prey, strong legs, and powerful talons. They also have extremely keen eyesight to enable them to spot potential prey from a distance.

This subfamily contains the buzzards (buteonine hawks) with great diversity in appearance and form and some appearing eagle-like, with at least 50 species included overall in the subfamily. At one time, several types were grouped, including large assemblages such as booted eagles, but modern studies using mitochondrial DNA clarified that this subfamily was smaller than formerly classified.

Systematics
The subfamily Buteoninae includes about 55 currently recognized species. Unlike many lineages of Accipitridae, which seemed to have radiated out of Africa or South Asia, the Buteoninae clearly originated in the Americas based on fossil records and current species distributions (more than 75% of the extant raptors from this lineage are found in the Americas).

Genera

Extinct Genera
Bermuteo
Garganoaetus

References

External links
 Accipitridae videos on the Internet Bird Collection

Bird subfamilies

Buteoninae


İnhisar, Bilecik ilinin bir ilçesidir.

Konum ve Tarihçe
Türkiye'nin kuzeybatısında yer alan ilçe; kuzeybatısında Gölpazarı, kuzeyinde Yenipazar, kuzeydoğusunda Sarıcakaya, doğusunda Mihalgazi güneydoğuda Tepebaşı (Eski Eskişehir merkezin kuzey kısmı) ve güneybatıda Söğüt ilçeleriyle komşudur. İlçenin yüzölçümü 315 km²'dir. Karadeniz Bölgesi'nde yer alır. İnhisar, 30 Kasım 1989 tarihinde belediye statüsü alarak beldeye dönüştü. 20.05.1990 tarih ve 20523 sayılı Resmî Gazete'de yayımlanan kanun ile ilçe statüsüne kavuştu.

Nüfus
İlçe bağlısı olarak merkez hariç olmak üzere ilçe merkezine bağlı; 9 köy (Akköy, Çayköy, Harmanköy, Hisarcık, Koyunlu, Muratça, Samrı, Tarpak, Tozman) ve 4 mahalleden oluşmaktadır. Sonradan ilçe olduğundan, asayişi İlçe Jandarma Komutanlığı'nca yürütülmektedir. Fakat 01.04.2008 de ilçeye polis karakolu gelmiştir ve ilçe merkezinde asayişi polis tarafından devralınmıştır. İlçeye bağlı tek belde, Tarpak'tır ve 1992'den beri bu statüyü yürütmekteyken 2009'da çıkan beldeler kanununca köye dönüştürülmüştür. Yerel seçimlerden sonra 9 cu köy ü olacaktır. Akçasu, Kayabalı ve Yakacık köyleri 1990-1992 arası buraya bağlıyken, 1992'deki halk oylamasıyla Söğüt'e geri dönmüştür.

Kaynakça

İnhisar


Þingey er eyja í Skjálfandafljóti. Hún er sex km löng og um einn og hálfur km að breidd.

Eyjan er flöt að mestu og þurrlend enda er undirstaða hennar eitt þeirra mörgu hraunflóða, sem fallið hafa norður-Bárðardal í tímanna rás. Jarðfræðingar telja að þetta hraun muni hafa runnið frá Trölladyngju í Ódáðahrauni fyrir um sjö þúsund árum . Þingey er nyrst á þessu hrauni og fara saman norðurendi eyjarinnar og nyrsti hluti þessa hrauns.

Þingeyjarsveit

Þingey


කාබනික පොහොර යනු සත්ත්ව අපද්‍රව්‍ය සහ ශාක කොටස් වලින් නිපදවා ගන්නා පොහොරයි..

උදාහරණ සහ ප්‍රභවයන්

ඛනිජ

සත්ව ප්‍රභවයන්

ශාකය

අපිරිසිදු රොන් මඩ

වෙනත්

මූලාශ්‍ර

පොහොර

කාබනික පොහොර


Arnoldo Mondadori Editore () este o editură din Italia. Principalii competitori ai editurii Mondadori pe piața de cărți din Italia sunt Gems, Giunti și Feltrinelli, în timp ce pe piața revistelor sunt Cairo Communication, Universo și RCS MediaGroup.

Misiunea companiei este de a încuraja răspândirea culturii și a ideilor, prin produse, activități și servicii menite să satisfacă nevoile și gusturile unei game cât mai largi de oameni, aducând împreună dragostea de cultură și calitatea editorială, cu o capacitate de a identifica și de a anticipa schimbările din mass-media și din domeniul comunicațiilor.

Istoric
Compania a fost fondată în 1907 în Ostiglia de tânărul de 18 ani Arnoldo Mondadori care și-a început cariera de editor cu publicarea revistei Luce!. În 1912 el a înființat "La Sociale" și a publicat prima carte AiaMadama, împreună cu prietenul apropiat Tommaso Monicelli, și în anul următor La Lampada, o serie de cărți pentru copii.

Editura continuat să lucreze intens chiar și în timpul Primului Război Mondial, publicând în principal reviste pentru trupele de pe front, cum ar fi La Tradotta, care conținea creații ale unor scriitori și ilustratori celebri precum Soffici, De Chirico și Carrà.

Sediul editurii a fost transferat în 1919 la Milano. După Primul Război Mondial, Mondadori a lansat mai multe serii de cărți de succes, inclusiv Gialli Mondadori în 1929, primul exemplu de serie de cărți italiene pe teme detectivistice.

În ciuda unei perioade de autarhie culturale, Mondadori a început în 1933 publicarea operelor unor scriitori internaționale cu seria de cărți Medusa. În 1935, printr-un acord cu Walt Disney, editura a început publicarea unei colecții pentru copii bazate pe personajele de desene animate Disney, care a durat până în 1988, când acordul între Mondadori și Walt Disney Company s-a încheiat.

În 1952 Mondadori a lansat I romanzi di Urania (romanele Uraniei), o revistă italiană de science fiction care apărea de două ori pe lună și a contribuit la o difuzare mai largă a acestui gen literar în Italia.

În 1960 Mondadori a lansat Il Club degli Editori, primul club italian de comandă de carte prin poștă, iar în 1965 a devenit prima editură italiană care a lansat vânzarea de cărți cu preț redus la chioșcurile de ziare (Oscar Mondadori).

Printr-un joint-venture încheiat cu Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso în 1976, Mondadori a publicat La Repubblica, primul ei cotidian; Gruppo Editoriale L'Espresso s-a separat în cele din urmă de Mondadori în 1991.

În 1981 Mondadori a intrat în afacerile de televiziune prin lansarea postului TV Rete Quattro, care a fost vândut către Fininvest câțiva ani mai târziu. În același an, printr-un joint-venture cu compania canadiană Harlequin Enterprises, a început să fie publicată în Italia seria de cărți de ficțiune romantică Harmony.

Societatea a fost controlată din 1991 de Fininvest, holdingul familiei lui Silvio Berlusconi. Marina Berlusconi este președintele companiei.

În 2016, achizițiile companiilor Rizzoli Libri  și Banzai Media  au marcat punctul culminant al strategiei lansate în 2013 de concentrare pe afacerile tradiționale: cărți și reviste.

Reviste

Italia

 Automobile Club până în 2011
 Auto oggi până în 2011
 Bolero Film
 Panoramauto.it
 CasaFacile
 Casabella
 Casaviva până în 2013
 Chi
 Ciak
 Confidenze
 Cosmopolitan până în 2011
 Creare până în 2007
 Cucina Moderna
 Cucina No Problem
 Donna Moderna
 Doppiovù până în 1978
 Economy până în 2012
 Epoca
 Evo până în 2011
 Flair până în 2016
 Focus
 Focus Brain Trainer până în 2012
 Focus Junior
 Focus Pico
 Focus Storia
 Geo până în 2015
 Giallo Zafferano
 Grazia
 Grazia Casa până în 2015
 Guida Cucina
 Guida TV
 Icon Design
 Il mio Papa
 Interni
 Jack până în 2012
 Men's Health până în 2013
 Nuovi Argomenti
 Panorama
 Panorama Icon
 Panorama Travel până în 2013
 PC Professionale
 Prometeo
 Sale & Pepe
 Spy
 Starbene
 Telepiù
 Tempo
 TuStyle
 TV Sorrisi e Canzoni
 VilleGiardini până în 2013

Franța

 Auto Plus (50%)
 Closer
 FHM
 Grazia
 Modes & Travaux
 Pleine Vie
 Science & Vie
 Télé Poche

Grecia
Mondadori deține 41,66% din compania grecească Attica Publications S.A, precum și posturile de radio Athens DeeJay (Grecia) și Rock FM (Grecia).

Radio
 R101 (post de radio)

Note

Legături externe

Companii listate la Borsa Italiana
Editori italieni
Edituri din Italia

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore


Yudai Tanaka (født 8. august 1988) er en japansk fodboldspiller.

Han har spillet for flere forskellige klubber i sin karriere, herunder Kawasaki Frontale, Tochigi SC, Gainare Tottori, Mito HollyHock, Vissel Kobe,  Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo og Blaublitz Akita.

Referencer

Eksterne henvisninger

Fodboldspillere fra Japan
Fodboldspillere fra Blaublitz Akita

Yudai Tanaka (fodboldspiller, født 1988)


Ivan Guidea (rusă Иван Гуйдя; n. 12 mai 1988, Nisporeni, RSS Moldovenească) este un luptător român specializat în lupte libere.

Carieră
S-a apucat de lupte libere în 2004, la vârsta de 16 ani. Primul lui antrenor a fost Iuri Cerednik, urmat de Grigori Ciorici. A evoluat pentru reprezentativa Republicii Moldova până în anul 2009, timp în care a suferit din cauza lipsurilor financiare. Tranziția spre România a fost una greoaie, Guidea făcând o pauză competițională până în anul 2013. Procesul a fost întârziat din cauza documentațiilor necesare. Mentorul său este Anatolie Guidea, fratele lui, medaliat european și mondial și actual antrenor al lotului național al României.

Palmares competițional

Debutul său în acest sport a fost unul încununat de succese, câștigând medaliile de bronz la Europenele de cadeți din 2004 și 2005, în cadrul categoriei 42 respectiv 50 de kg.

Prima lui performanță sub steag românesc a fost la turneul Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov din 2013, unde a obținut medalia de bronz la categoria 60 de kg. La memorialul Ion Corneanu din România a fost distins cu medalia de aur.

Guidea a revenit la turneul internațional Dan Kolov - Nikola Petrov în 2015, unde a reușit o performanță de excepție, locul 1 la categoria 61 de kg. A participat și la Jocurile Europene din 2015, unde a fost eliminat în recalificările pentru finala de bronz.

În 2016, a reușit clasarea pe locul trei la Europene de la Riga, în cadrul categoriei 61 de kg. La turneul de calificare la Jocurile Olimpice de vară din 2016 s-a clasat pe primul loc la categoria 57 kg, reușind calificarea. La Jocuri, Ivan Guidea a părăsit competiția în sferturi.

Note

Legături externe
 Ivan Guidea la Comitetul Olimpic și Sportiv Român

Sportivi moldoveni în viață
Sportivi români în viață
Luptători la Jocurile Olimpice de vară din 2016
Cetățeni naturalizați în România
Oameni din Nisporeni

Ivan Guidea


Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon (born 19 July 1970) is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) from 2014 to 2023. She has served as a member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 1999, first as an additional member for the Glasgow electoral region, and as the member for Glasgow Southside (formerly Glasgow Govan) from 2007.

Born in Ayrshire, Sturgeon is a law graduate of the University of Glasgow, having worked as a solicitor in Glasgow before her election to the Scottish Parliament in 1999. She served successively as the SNP's shadow minister for education, health, and justice. Sturgeon entered the leadership of the SNP but later withdrew from the contest in favour of Alex Salmond, standing instead as depute leader on a joint ticket with Salmond. Both were subsequently elected; as Salmond was still an MP, Sturgeon led the SNP in the Scottish Parliament as Leader of the Opposition from 2004 to 2007. The SNP emerged as the largest party following the 2007 election and Salmond headed the first SNP minority government, with Sturgeon as his deputy. From 2007 to 2012, she served as the health secretary, overseeing the scrapping of prescription charges and the 2009 swine flu pandemic. Following the SNP's landslide majority in 2011, she was appointed as the Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Capital Investment and Cities, which saw her in charge of the legislative process for the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. The defeat of the Yes Scotland campaign resulted in Salmond's resignation as SNP leader.

Sturgeon was elected unopposed as SNP leader in November 2014 and was subsequently appointed as first minister, becoming the first woman to hold either position. She entered office amid a rapid surge in membership of the SNP, which was reflected in the party's performance in the 2015 general election, winning 56 of the 59 Scottish seats and replacing the Liberal Democrats as the third-largest party in the House of Commons. The SNP continued to enjoy electoral successes throughout Sturgeon's nine years in office, but lost 21 seats in the 2017 general election. Despite losing her majority, Sturgeon secured a second term in office in 2016, forming a minority government.

Sturgeon led the Scottish Government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic, implementing a series of restrictions on social gatherings and the rollout of the vaccine programme. A seat short of a majority in 2021, Sturgeon became the only first minister to serve a third term, and she subsequently entered a power-sharing agreement with the Scottish Greens. The calls from Sturgeon's government and the wider independence movement for a second referendum were unsuccessful, as successive prime ministers refused to grant a Section 30 order. On 15 February 2023, Sturgeon resigned the leadership of the SNP; she was succeeded by her health secretary, Humza Yousaf, the following month.

Early life

Early years and family
Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon was born in Ayrshire Central Hospital in Irvine on 19 July 1970. She is the eldest of two daughters born to Joan Kerr Sturgeon (née Ferguson, born 23 October 1952), a dental nurse, and Robin Sturgeon (born 28 September 1948), an electrician. Her younger sister, Gillian Sturgeon, is an NHS worker. Her family has some roots in North East England; her paternal grandmother, Margaret Sturgeon (née Mill), was from Ryhope in what is now the City of Sunderland. Her grandmother married Robert Sturgeon, a gardener from Ayr, at St Paul's Parish Church in 1943, and they both eventually moved back to the south west of Scotland. Sturgeon grew up in Prestwick and in the village of Dreghorn, in a terraced council house, which her parents bought through the right-to-buy scheme.

Sturgeon was a quiet child and has been described by her younger sister as "the sensible one" of the two. Sturgeon was shy and has said that she "much preferred to sit with my head in a book than talking to people". She developed a passion for books and reading which continued into adult life. She has described herself as being an "austere" teen whose style tended towards goth, adding that "if you see pictures of me back then, you would struggle to know whether I was a boy or a girl". Sturgeon was a fan of Wham! and Duran Duran, and enjoyed spending Saturday nights at Frosty's Ice Disco in Irvine.

Education and legal career
Sturgeon attended Dreghorn Primary School from 1975 to 1982 and Greenwood Academy from 1982 to 1988. She later studied law at the University of Glasgow School of Law, graduating with a Bachelor of Laws (Hons) in 1992 and a Diploma in Legal Practice the following year. During her time at the University of Glasgow she was active as a member of the Glasgow University Scottish Nationalist Association and the Glasgow University Students' Representative Council.

Following her graduation, Sturgeon completed her legal traineeship at McClure Naismith, a Glasgow firm of solicitors, in 1995. After qualifying as a solicitor, she worked for Bell & Craig, a firm of solicitors in Stirling, and later at the Drumchapel Law Centre and a Money Advice Centre in Glasgow from 1997 until her election to the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

Early political years

In her early teens, Sturgeon joined the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) and in 1986, at the age of 16, she became a member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), quickly becoming the party's Youth Affairs Vice Convener and Publicity Vice Convener. She joined the SNP following an assumption by her English teacher, who was a Labour councillor, she would be a Labour supporter. In the 1987 UK General election, Sturgeon got her first taste of campaigning, going door-to-door to get her local SNP candidate, Kay Ullrich, elected to Westminster. Despite Ullrich failing to win the seat, Sturgeon ploughed her political energy into the Young Scottish Nationalists (now Young Scots for Independence), joining its national executive when she was 17.

In an interview with the BBC's Woman's Hour, Sturgeon revealed that it was Margaret Thatcher who inspired her to enter politics, because, due to rising unemployment in Scotland at the time, she developed "a strong feeling that it was wrong for Scotland to be governed by a Tory government that we hadn't elected".

Sturgeon became the youngest ever parliamentary candidate in Scotland in the 1992 general election. Aged 21, Sturgeon was selected as the SNP candidate in the Glasgow Shettleston constituency. She was unsuccessful, having been beaten by almost 15,000 votes by Labour. Sturgeon also stood unsuccessfully as the SNP candidate for the Irvine North ward on Cunninghame District Council in May 1992, for the Baillieston/Mount Vernon ward on Strathclyde Regional Council in 1994, and for the Bridgeton ward on Glasgow City Council in 1995.

In the mid-1990s Sturgeon and Charles Kennedy went together on a political study visit to Australia.

The 1997 general election saw Sturgeon selected to fight the Glasgow Govan seat for the SNP. Boundary changes meant that the notional Labour majority in the seat had increased substantially. However, infighting between the two rival candidates for the Labour nomination, Mohammed Sarwar and Mike Watson, along with an energetic local campaign, resulted in Glasgow Govan being the only Scottish seat to see a swing away from Labour in the midst of a Labour landslide nationwide. Sarwar did, however, win the seat with a majority of 2,914 votes. Shortly after this, Sturgeon was appointed as the SNP's spokesperson for energy and education matters.

Early parliamentary career

SNP in opposition

Sturgeon stood for election to the Scottish Parliament in the first Scottish Parliament election in 1999 as the SNP candidate for Glasgow Govan. Although she failed to win the seat, she was placed first in the SNP's regional list for the Glasgow region, and was thus elected as a Member of the Scottish Parliament. The SNP emerged as the second largest party and sat in opposition to the Labour-Lib Dem coalition. In Alex Salmond's shadow cabinet, she served as Shadow Minister for Children and Education from 1999 to 2000.

As Shadow Education minister, Sturgeon backed Labour's efforts to repeal Section 28 – a Westminster law that banned the promotion of homosexuality in schools. There was, however, significant public opposition to repeal and an unscientific postal vote on the issue – organised by SNP donor Brian Souter – suggested most Scots wanted to keep the clause. Acknowledging this, Sturgeon suggested: "That is why the SNP have urged a policy for many months that we believe can provide people with the necessary reassurance, by providing a statutory underpinning to the guidelines, and resolve this difficult debate. We believe that the value of marriage should be clearly referred to in the guidelines, without denigrating other relationships or children brought up in other kinds of relationship." The compromise had the support of Souter but an amendment to that effect was voted down by MSPs who expressed concerns it would stigmatise children from single parent and unmarried families.

Sturgeon served as Shadow Minister for Health and Community Care from 2000 to 2003, and Shadow Minister for Justice from 2003 to 2004. She also served as a member of the Education, Culture and Sport Committee and the Health and Community Care Committee.

2004 SNP leadership election

On 22 June 2004, John Swinney resigned as Leader of the SNP following poor results in the European Parliament election. His then-depute, Roseanna Cunningham, immediately stood for the leadership. The previous leader, Alex Salmond, at the time refused to stand. On 24 June 2004, Sturgeon also entered the leadership contest, with Kenny MacAskill as her running mate. The political columnist Iain Macwhirter declared that while she "didn't inspire great warmth", she was "quick on her feet, lacks any ideological baggage and has real determination – unlike... Roseanna Cunningham".

However, once Cunningham emerged as the favourite to win, Salmond entered the contest and Sturgeon subsequently withdrew from the contest and declared her support for Salmond, standing instead as his running mate for the depute leadership. It was reported that Salmond had privately supported Sturgeon in her leadership bid, but decided to run for the position himself as it became apparent she was unlikely to beat Cunningham. The majority of the SNP hierarchy lent their support to the Salmond–Sturgeon bid for the leadership, although MSP Alex Neil backed Salmond as leader, but refused to endorse Sturgeon as depute.

On 3 September 2004, the leadership contest resulted in Salmond and Sturgeon elected as Leader and Depute Leader respectively. As Salmond was still an MP in the House of Commons, Sturgeon led the SNP at the Scottish Parliament until the 2007 election, when Salmond was elected as an MSP.

Leader of the Opposition; 2004–2007
As leader of the SNP in the Scottish Parliament, she served as the Leader of the Opposition in Holyrood. Sturgeon became a high-profile figure in Scottish politics and often clashed with First Minister Jack McConnell at First Minister's Questions. This included rows over the House of Commons' decision to replace the Trident nuclear weapon system, and the SNP's plans to replace council tax in Scotland with a local income tax. Sturgeon quickly grew a reputation in Holyrood as opposition leader, becoming known as "nippy sweetie" – Scottish slang for the "sharp-tongued and strong-minded".

Deputy First Minister of Scotland (2007–2014)

In the 2007 Scottish Parliament election, Sturgeon defeated Gordon Jackson QC with a 4.7% swing to the SNP in the Glasgow Govan constituency. This was one of many swings to the SNP, as the party emerged as the largest party, winning one seat more than the governing Scottish Labour Party. Although the SNP was recognised as the winners of the election, it failed to obtain a majority and Labour was not willing to allow the SNP to enter government. Sturgeon led coalition negotiation talks between the Scottish Liberal Democrats and the Scottish Greens, but these talks failed to reach an agreement, with the Lib Dems backing out and the Greens instead supporting a 'confidence and supply' agreement. Ultimately, Salmond formed a minority government and he was appointed First Minister of Scotland. He appointed Sturgeon as Deputy First Minister and tasked her with the Cabinet position of Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing.

Health Secretary (2007–2012)

Sturgeon served as Health Secretary in Salmond's first, and for a year, in his second cabinet. She was supported in her role as Health Secretary by Shona Robison, the Minister for Public Health and Sport, and by Alex Neil, the Minister for Housing and Communities. She launched her programme for government, the Better Health, Better Care: Action Plan, which settled a new vision for NHS Scotland. She reversed the decision to close casualty units at University Hospital Ayr and University Hospital Monklands. Sturgeon oversaw the scrapping of prescription charges In Scotland, an election pledge by the SNP originally for the chronically ill and those with cancer.

Health policy
Sturgeon also outlined a guaranteed maximum 18-week wait for patients after they had seen their GP and vowed to do away with deferred or "hidden" waiting lists. She ordered a review of the thorny issue of hospital car parking charges – as high as £7 in some areas – and launched an inquiry into the infection of NHS patients with Hepatitis C and HIV from tainted blood products.

2009 swine flu pandemic

As Health Secretary, Sturgeon became more widely known internationally for her handling of the 2009 flu pandemic.

On 26 April 2009, the Scottish Government confirmed that two people who had returned from Mexico had been admitted to Monklands Hospital in Airdrie after experiencing "mild flu-like symptoms". Sturgeon stated that there was "no immediate threat to public health in Scotland", but added, "monitoring of those who have been in close contact with the two people is also being carried out as an additional precaution." The following day, she confirmed that these were cases of the swine influenza A (H1N1) virus. Authorities in both Scotland and England stated that there were no plans to trace the fellow airline passengers who may have travelled alongside the couple, since the authorities do not classify them as "close contacts".

On 11 June, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the influenza virus a pandemic. Sturgeon told the Scottish Parliament that containment of the virus had failed and that the Scottish Government was taking steps to mitigate the spread of the virus. "We have seen a rapid increase in the number of confirmed cases in Scotland over the past 10 days", she told Parliament. "Based on this experience, Health Protection Scotland has expressed the view that sustained community transmission appears to be taking place." Four days later, a Scottish woman with underlying health conditions died at the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley. This marked the first death in Scotland and Europe.

Minimum pricing unit

To tackle Scotland's poor relationship with alcohol, Sturgeon passed legislation to increase the price of alcohol per unit to help reduce sales, in particular, for those addicted. In June 2012, the Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Act 2012 was passed after receiving support from the Liberal Democrats, Conservatives and Greens. Labour refused to support the bill as they claimed it failed to tackle windfall profit from alcohol retailers.

Infrastructure Secretary (2012–2014)

At the 2011 election, the SNP won a large overall majority. Sturgeon was retained as Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing until a reshuffle one year later, when she was appointed as Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure, Capital Investment and Cities and an additional role overseeing the referendum on Scottish independence, essentially putting her in charge of the SNP's referendum campaign.

In 2012 she pledged to build a high-speed railway line between Glasgow and Edinburgh by 2024, cutting journey times between the two cities to under 30 minutes. Sturgeon said the Scottish Government would "not wait" for Westminster to build a high-speed line to Scotland. However, in 2016 the plan was abandoned and the Scottish Government blamed Westminster.

2014 Scottish independence referendum

Salmond put Sturgeon in charge of the Scottish Government's legislative process for a referendum on Scottish Independence and she was essentially in charge of the SNP's referendum campaign.

In December 2012, Sturgeon said that she believed that independence would allow Scotland to build a stronger and more competitive country, and would change spending priorities to address "the scandal of soaring poverty in a country as rich as Scotland".

While campaigning for a Yes vote in August 2013, she told The Guardian that if Scots voted for the Union: "Will there be another referendum round the corner? No. We can't bind our successors, but we've made very clear our belief that constitutional referenda are once-in-a-generation events."

In November 2013, Sturgeon joined Salmond to launch Scotland's Future – the Scottish Government's prospectus for independence. Sturgeon was one of the white paper's most high-profile media champions and frequently debated its contents with opposition politicians and sceptical Scots. When the British Government turned down the Scottish Government's idea of a formal currency union – on the grounds that the rationale for sharing a currency with a foreign country was "not clear" – Sturgeon accused Westminster of trying to "bully Scotland" and said it would "cost their own businesses hundreds of millions in transaction costs".

During the campaign, the European Commission said that if Scots decided to leave the United Kingdom, it would also mean leaving the European Union. Scotland would then have to reapply for EU membership and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso predicted this would be "extremely difficult, if not impossible". In July 2014 Sturgeon said this would put at risk the right of EU citizens to continue living in Scotland: "There are 160,000 EU nationals from other states living in Scotland, including some in the Commonwealth Games city of Glasgow. If Scotland was outside Europe, they would lose the right to stay here."

On 19 September 2014, independence was rejected in the Scottish independence referendum, with 55.3% of the voters voting no and 44.7% voting yes. Following the defeat of the Yes Scotland campaign, Salmond resigned as First Minister and Leader of the SNP. Sturgeon immediately entered the election to replace him, and received huge support from the SNP hierarchy. Sturgeon said that there would be "no greater privilege" than to lead the SNP. On Salmond's resignation, Sturgeon said:
The personal debt of gratitude I owe Alex is immeasurable. He has been my friend, mentor and colleague for more than 20 years. Quite simply, I would not have been able to do what I have in politics without his constant advice, guidance and support through all these years. [...] I can think of no greater privilege than to seek to lead the party I joined when I was just 16. However, that decision is not for today.

Following the referendum defeat, Sturgeon said that "further devolution is the route to independence". She also opined that Scottish independence was a matter of "when, not if".

Leadership of the Scottish National Party

On 24 September 2014, Sturgeon officially launched her campaign bid to succeed Salmond as Leader of the Scottish National Party at the November leadership election. It quickly became apparent that no other candidate would be able to receive enough required nominations to run a credible leadership campaign. Upon launching her campaign, Sturgeon also resigned as Depute Leader, triggering a concurrent depute leadership election; the MSPs Angela Constance and Keith Brown and the MP Stewart Hosie all nominated themselves to succeed Sturgeon as Depute Leader.

Nominations for the SNP leadership closed on 15 October, with Sturgeon confirmed as the only candidate. SNP convener Derek Mackay publicly congratulated Sturgeon as de facto leader in waiting, saying that she would be "a fantastic new leader" for both the SNP and for Scotland. On this date, Sturgeon also came out on top in a trust rating opinion poll, conducted for the SNP, which indicated that 54% of the Scottish population trusted her to "stand up for Scotland's interests".

At a speech in Dundee's Caird Hall on 7 November, Sturgeon pledged to be "the most accessible First Minister ever" when she took over. She also promised to hold a monthly Facebook question and answer session with members of the public, regular town hall meetings and that the Scottish Cabinet would meet outside Edinburgh once every two months.

Sturgeon was formally acclaimed as the first female Leader of the SNP on 14 November 2014 at the Autumn Conference in Perth, with Hosie as her depute. This also made her First Minister-Designate, given the SNP's absolute majority in the Scottish Parliament. In her first speech as leader, Sturgeon said that it was "the privilege of her life" to lead the party she joined as a teenager.

Although Salmond officially tendered his resignation as First Minister on 18 November 2014, Sturgeon was not sworn in until two days later. From 18 November until her official appointment on 20 November, she served as the acting First Minister, essentially the First Minister-elect.

First Minister of Scotland (2014–2023)

First term (2014–2016)
On 20 November 2014, Sturgeon was sworn into office at the Court of Session in a ceremony presided by Lord Gill, after receiving the royal warrant of appointment by Queen Elizabeth II. She became the first woman to hold office. During her first First Minister's Questions after being sworn in, Sturgeon tried to strike a conciliatory tone, saying that she came into her new post "with an open mind and a willingness to hear proposals from all sides of the chamber."

First cabinet
Sturgeon began making appointments to her first cabinet on 21 November 2014, beginning with the appointment of finance secretary John Swinney to become her Deputy First Minister. Shona Robison, a close ally to Sturgeon, became the health secretary, while Keith Brown and Angela Constance, who were both unsuccessful in their bids for the deputy leadership of the SNP, were appointed infrastructure secretary and education secretary, respectively. Michael Matheson was promoted as justice secretary.

The departure of Kenny MacAskill and Michael Russell signalled a generational shift away from the "79 group". Alex Neil, who many speculated would be dismissed, remained in cabinet but in a "less prominent portfolio" of social justice, communities and pensioners' rights. Roseanna Cunningham, who had difficult relationship with Sturgeon, was surprisingly promoted to cabinet as the fair work secretary. Fiona Hyslop and Richard Lochhead remained in their portfolios of culture secretary and rural affairs secretary, respectively.

Sturgeon's cabinet was 50/50 gender balance, with five men and five women, including herself.

2015 Westminster landslide

Sturgeon led the Scottish National Party through a landslide victory in the 2015 UK general election, winning 56 out of 59 Scottish seats at Westminster, the party's best ever performance. The party received 50% of the vote share in Scotland and replaced the Liberal Democrats as the third largest party in the British House of Commons. Sturgeon had stated that the party's success in the election was not a mandate for another independence referendum, but primarily for a stronger voice for Scotland in London.

In the run-up to the elections, Sturgeon took part in several Scottish and UK-wide TV election debates and according to opinion polls was regarded to have had a successful performance. As part of the election campaign, Sturgeon indicated that the SNP would hold another independence referendum if it won the upcoming 2016 Scottish Parliament election.

2016 Scottish Parliament election
Sturgeon launched, in what she claimed, as the most "bold, ambitious and reforming" SNP manifesto for the 2016 Scottish Parliament election. She set out the party's plans to increase income tax by freezing tax thresholds, reversing her previous policy of cutting taxes for higher earners. The manifesto also included a commitment to increase NHS funding by £500 million, "baby boxes" full of essentials to newborn parents, and an ambitious new target to cut emissions by 50% by 2020 as of the party's effort to tackle climate change. Sturgeon also hinted if re-elected she would hold a second referendum on Scottish independence.

Despite losing her majority, Sturgeon claimed a "historic victory" after the SNP won a third consecutive term in government and sought a second term in office as a minority government.

Second term (2016–2021)

2016 EU membership referendum
In 2016, the European Union membership referendum to decide the future of the UK's European Union membership resulted in 52% of voters in the UK voting for Brexit (leaving the EU), with 48% voting to remain; all council areas in Scotland voted by a majority for the UK to remain a member of the EU. Across Scotland, 62% of voters backed the UK remaining a member of the EU, with 38% voting for the UK to leave.

In response to the result, on 24 June 2016, Sturgeon said that Scottish Government officials would begin planning for a second independence referendum. Sturgeon claimed that it was "clear that the people of Scotland see their future as part of the European Union" and that Scotland had "spoken decisively" with a "strong, unequivocal" vote to remain in the European Union. Sturgeon said it was "democratically unacceptable" that Scotland could be taken out of the EU "against its will". An emergency Scottish cabinet meeting on 25 June agreed that the Scottish Government would seek to enter negotiations with the EU and its member states, to explore options to protect Scotland's place in the EU. Sturgeon later said that while she believed in Scottish independence, her starting point in these discussions was to protect Scotland's relationship with the EU.

Future referendum on independence
Sturgeon confirmed in June 2016 that the Scottish government had formally agreed to draft legislation to allow a second independence referendum to take place. As the constitution is a reserved matter under the Scotland Act 1998, for a future referendum on Scottish independence to be legal under UK law, it would need to receive the consent of the British Parliament to take place.

Prior to the day the Prime Minister triggered Article 50, formally allowing the process of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union, the Scottish Parliament voted 69 to 59 in favour of another independence referendum. By the end of that week, on 30 March 2017, Sturgeon wrote to the Prime Minister requesting a Section 30 order, formally devolving the responsibility and power to the Scottish Government to plan for and hold another referendum on Scottish independence. Previously, May and David Mundell, Secretary of State for Scotland, had both highlighted that as the negotiations began with the European Union on the United Kingdom's withdraw, it was important for Scotland to work with the UK Government to get the best exit deal for both the United Kingdom and Scotland, stating that "now is not the time for another referendum".

Following the 2017 UK general election, Sturgeon's government postponed legislation pertaining to the proposed second referendum on Scottish independence until at least autumn 2018. Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, all plans for another referendum were put on hold.

2017 UK general election

Sturgeon kicked off her election campaign pledging that a strong result for the SNP would "reinforce" her mandate for a second independence referendum. However, the SNP lost 21 seats in the 2017 United Kingdom general election in Scotland and the party's vote dropped by 13%, although they remained the biggest party in Scotland. Sturgeon admitted that these results were "bitterly disappointing" and acknowledged that her party's plans for a second referendum were 'undoubtedly' a factor in the election results. It was the best result for the Scottish Conservatives since Margaret Thatcher and the party's campaign slogan, "We said No to independence. We meant it", resonated in areas that had voted strongly for the Union in 2014. Observers also concluded that opposition to the EU's Common Fisheries Policy in coastal communities was a factor behind large swings to the Tories in North East seats previously held by nationalists for decades.

Several weeks later Sturgeon told the Scottish Parliament that she would "reset" and delay her plans for a second independence referendum; the SNP losses in that month's election had led her to conclude that many Scots "just want a break from making big political decisions".

Alex Salmond sexual harassment case

In January 2019, Sturgeon referred herself to an independent ministerial ethics body, which led to an investigation into her actions with respect to a sexual harassment case concerning allegations against Salmond. This followed her admitting that she had had a secret meeting and subsequent phone call with Salmond about the Scottish government's allegations against him. She raised these with the Permanent Secretary to the Scottish Government, Leslie Evans, two months later, rather than reporting them immediately, as she should have done if they constitute government matters (as per the ministerial code). Sturgeon argued that the meetings were SNP party matters, and thus not covered. The investigating panel consisted of Dame Elish Angiolini, a former Solicitor General for Scotland and lord advocate, and James Hamilton, a former director of public prosecutions in the Republic of Ireland.

On 15 January 2019, the Scottish Parliament agreed to hold its own inquiry into the matter, the Committee on the Scottish Government Handling of Harassment Complaints, to investigate how the Government breached its own guidelines in its original investigation into the harassment claims against Salmond, and then lost a judicial review into their actions and had to pay over £500,000 to Salmond for legal expenses. Sturgeon's husband, Peter Murrell, was called to this inquiry to give evidence on 8 December 2020. Opposition parties criticised Sturgeon on disparity and contradictions between the narratives of Murrell and herself.

On 4 March 2021, Sturgeon answered questions over a period of eight hours from members of the committee. Two of the civil servants who made complaints about Salmond later said they felt they had been "dropped" by the Scottish Government after it lost the judicial review against him, adding they feared their experiences would make it less likely people would make complaints in the future. Labour MP Jess Phillips, a former employee of Women's Aid, accused Sturgeon of being "unprofessional with those women's lives" and said there had been a "litany of failures in professionalism and decency."

2019 UK general election

Sturgeon led her party to a landslide victory in the 2019 United Kingdom general election in Scotland. The SNP won 48 seats, and came second place in the 11 others; their 45% of the vote yielded 80% of the seats in Scotland. Among the election casualties was Liberal Democrats leader Jo Swinson, who lost her seat in East Dunbartonshire. Sturgeon was branded as "ungracious" when she was filmed by Sky News celebrating Swinson's defeat. Sturgeon apologised for being overexcited although expressed that she was celebrating Amy Callaghan's win. In the wake of the results, Sturgeon said that Prime Minister Boris Johnson had "no right" to stand in the way of another Scottish independence referendum after an "overwhelming" SNP election victory. She also said that the result "renews, reinforces and strengthens" the mandate for Indyref2.

COVID–19 pandemic

The worldwide pandemic of COVID-19 began during Sturgeon's second term as First Minister. The first case of the virus in Scotland was confirmed on 1 March 2020, when a resident in Tayside had tested positive.

Initially, the Scottish Government resisted banning public events and on 12 March allowed 47,000 fans to attend a Rangers match at Ibrox, insisting that, "stopping mass gatherings [is] not the best way to contain this virus." However, Sturgeon's government ordered all schools and nurseries in Scotland closed on 20 March to try to limit the spread of the virus. On 23 March, Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Sturgeon ordered Scotland into "lockdown", limiting the reasons why people may leave their homes in an attempt to limit the spread of the virus, to protect the health of the population, and to ease the pressure the virus placed on NHS Scotland services and workforce. Subsequently the restrictions were repeatedly tightened, loosened and adapted in parts or all of Scotland in response to developments in the situation.

During the early stages of the pandemic 1,300 elderly hospital patients were transferred into care homes without receiving a negative coronavirus test result. Many had been infected with the virus and ended up passing it on to other care home residents. Over three thousand care home residents died from COVID-19 and Gary Smith, Scotland Secretary of the GMB, said the policy had turned "care homes into morgues". When asked by the BBC if the policy had been a mistake, Sturgeon said: "Looking back on that now, with the knowledge we have now and with the benefit of hindsight, yes." In April 2020 whistle-blowers in the NHS came forward to reveal that staff were being made to reuse dirty personal protective equipment (PPE) while at work. One nurse told STV, "[When we hear the government say supplies are fine] it's not frustrating, it's crushing. It is absolutely crushing. We feel we are being lied to." Sturgeon told the Scottish Parliament in July, "At no point within this crisis has Scotland run out of any aspect of PPE. We have worked hard to make sure that supplies are there, we've worked hard overcoming challenges that we have faced along the way."

In July 2020, Sturgeon advocated that the leaders of the four UK nations adopt a coordinated Zero-COVID strategy.

In February 2021 Audit Scotland published a report that concluded the Scottish Government had not prepared adequately for a pandemic. While it commended the authorities for preventing hospitals from becoming overwhelmed during the crisis, the watchdog also noted that recommendations from pandemic planning exercises in 2015, 2016 and 2018 had not been fully implemented. One particular problem it highlighted was that not enough had been done to ensure Scottish hospitals and care homes had enough personal protective equipment. Overall, it concluded that ministers "could have been better prepared to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic". Sturgeon said there were "lots of lessons to learn".

In March 2021, the Court of Session declared that the Scottish Government's prohibition on communal worship, imposed during the pandemic, was unlawful. This followed an open letter two months earlier, written by 200 church leaders to Sturgeon, warning her that the prohibition could be unlawful.

In April 2021 Scotland's death toll from COVID-19 passed 10,000.

At a session of First Minister's Questions in June 2021, Sturgeon was asked about mistakes made early on in the pandemic and she replied: "If I could turn the clock back, would we go into lockdown earlier than we did? Yes, I think that is true."

In April 2022 Sturgeon demanded that Prime Minister Boris Johnson resign after police fined him for breaking lockdown rules in 2020. "The basic values of integrity and decency – essential to the proper working of any parliamentary democracy – demand that he go", she tweeted. The following week Sturgeon received an official reprimand from Police Scotland after a video emerged of her campaigning in a barber shop without a mask. Sturgeon – who had previously apologised to the Scottish Parliament after she was caught breaking the same law in December 2020 – apologised once more and said the police had been "absolutely right to treat me no differently to any other citizen."

Third term (2021–23)

Sturgeon led the SNP into the 2021 Scottish Parliament election on a manifesto promise to hold a second independence referendum after the COVID-19 pandemic was over. In the election, the SNP won 64 of the 129 seats contested. The SNP won a fourth consecutive election, albeit short of an overall majority, with a record number of votes on both the constituency and regional vote as well as increasing their share of the constituency vote and making a net gain of one seat.

Sturgeon was nominated for the post of First Minister by a vote of the Scottish Parliament on 18 May, defeating Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross and Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie by 64 votes to 31 and 4 respectively. This win resulted in Sturgeon becoming the first First Minister in the history of the Scottish Parliament to form a third government. Shortly after being elected, Sturgeon appointed John Swinney to the newly created position of Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery.

Power-sharing agreement

In August 2021, Sturgeon and Scottish Green Party co-leaders Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater reached a power-sharing agreement between their parties. There was no agreement on oil and gas exploration, but the government now argued that it had a stronger case for a national independence referendum. As part of the agreement, the Green Party co-leaders would be nominated to serve as ministers.

Climate crisis
In August 2021, confonted by climate activist Lauren Macdonald about the Cambo oil field west of Shetland, Sturgeon refused to take a position on whether its development should go ahead. A video of the interaction went viral and a few days later, Sturgeon wrote to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, asking that the development of Cambo should be "reassessed in light of the severity of the climate emergency". The letter represented a significant shift in policy for the SNP, which had historically been a strong supporter of the oil and gas industry; the party's blueprint for an independent Scotland in 2013 was predicated on tax revenue earned from domestic oil production, while Sturgeon had predicted in the run-up to the referendum that, "We're on the verge of another North Sea bonanza".

This shift in position was welcomed by the Scottish Green party but Greenpeace criticised Sturgeon for not coming out more strongly against the oil field. "The First Minister must stop hiding behind Boris Johnson", a spokesperson for the organisation said. "If she wants to show leadership on climate she must clearly say: stop Cambo." In November 2021, although no assessment had taken place, Sturgeon told the Scottish Parliament she believed the oilfield "should not get the green light".

Caledonian MacBrayne ferry delay

In the late 2010s, Scottish islanders began to complain that the ageing ferry fleet that connected them to the mainland had become increasingly unreliable. During the winter of 2022 only one in three sailings to the island of Coll went ahead; Hebridean shopkeepers kept receiving deliveries of rotten food;
while other islanders said they had missed doctors' appointments, funerals and even the chance to say goodbye to dying loved ones because of cancelled sailings.

The Scottish Government had commissioned two new ferries for £97m from Ferguson's shipyard in 2015, but the construction of the two vessels was beset by delays and complications. In 2022 Audit Scotland concluded that the final price tag for the vessels would be somewhere between £250m and £400m once the ships were finished in 2023. Furthermore, they concluded that the Scottish Government had awarded the contracts without normal financial safeguards and presided over a "multitude of failings".

Sturgeon told the Scottish Parliament of her "deep regret" that islanders were enduring such chaos and said that the Government was "learning lessons from this experience". Key documentation, which might have explained why ministers signed the contracts without appropriate safeguards to protect taxpayers' money, was lost and Sturgeon later said this too was "regrettable" and that "the Government will learn lessons."

Second independence referendum proposals

In June 2022, Sturgeon officially unveiled plans for Scottish independence once again. She argued that her government had an "indisputable mandate" for a second Scottish independence referendum. She argued that independence would allow Scotland to set out "a different and better vision" and claimed that there is a legally secure path to get a referendum without permission from the cabinet. This plan has been met with condemnation from various opposing parties, with the Prime Minister rejecting her plan.

Sturgeon scheduled the referendum for 19 October 2023. She sought the Prime Minister to consent to the vote by signing a section 30 order, a move that Downing Street has refused to comply. She asked Scotland's Lord Advocate to consider referring the matter to the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom to rule if the Scottish Government has the power to host a referendum without the Government of the United Kingdom's approval, this request has since been granted.

In October 2022, Sturgeon launched her government's third independence paper, which outlines the currency in an independent Scotland and joining the EU. She proposed the Scottish Government would use the pound sterling for a brief period before transitioning to a new currency known as the 'Scottish Pound'. She argued independence would be "essential" for economic prosperity for Scotland as she claimed the economic climate throughout the UK does not offer strength, stability or security.

On the day the Supreme Court ruled the Scottish Parliament does not have the power to legislate a referendum on independence, Sturgeon declared the next democratic election in Scotland - in this case a UK general election expected to be held in 2024 - would be campaigned by the SNP as a de facto referendum. Unionist parties have rejected this characterisation. Some SNP members have urged Sturgeon to call an early election at Holyrood to speed up the process for a de facto referendum.

Gender recognition reforms

As part of the SNP's 2016 manifesto policy, the SNP pledged to voters review and reform the way that trans people change their legal gender. However, the policy divided the party and it the bill was delayed during Sturgeon's second term in office because of opposition to the policy and the COVID-19 pandemic. In the 2021 SNP manifesto, Sturgeon committed the party once again to reform the Gender Recognition Act 2004 of the UK Parliament and in August that year included the commitment in her agreement with the Scottish Greens on power-sharing.

In September 2021, Sturgeon was accused of shutting down debate about gender reforms after she described concerns about gender recognition reform as "not valid" and campaign groups and analysts complained that their concerns were being ignored.

On 22 December 2022, the Scottish Parliament voted 86 to 39 to pass the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill which was introduced by Sturgeon's government. On 17 January 2023, the UK Government decided to implement a section 35 order of the Scottish Act 1998 which prevented the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill from gaining Royal Assent. She opposed the decision made and criticised Scottish Secretary Alister Jack for blocking the bill and said that the decision was an attack on the Scottish Parliament and Scottish democracy as a whole and said that the matter would be brought to the courts.

In 2023, Sturgeon was criticised in connection with the case of Isla Bryson, a transgender woman who had raped two women prior to her transition. On this basis, Bryson was initially sent to a women's prison but was later moved to a men's prison. Sturgeon refused to say if she regards Bryson as a man or woman, though she used female pronouns when talking about Bryson.

Resignation

On 15 February 2023, Sturgeon resigned as first minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish National Party, pending a leadership election. At a press conference in Bute House, Sturgeon insisted that her resignation was not due to "short term pressures" and stated that the job "takes its toll on you". Sturgeon stated that she believed that her successor would lead Scotland to independence and that she would look on with pride whoever takes on the role.

While appearing on a podcast for BBC Scotland, Sturgeon would later say that internet speculation about her life were a part of the reason she decided to stand down from her position as first minister, specifically referring to rumours regarding her sexuality, love life, and property portfolio as being wildly inaccurate.

Domestic issues

Drugs deaths crisis

In 2016 the Scottish Government cut direct funding to drug and alcohol rehabilitation programmes from £69.2 million to £53.8 million – a drop of 22%. At the time, Scottish Drugs Forum Chief Executive David Liddell said he was concerned that the cuts had "the potential to increase harm and drug-related deaths." That year 867 Scots lost their lives to drugs – an increase of 23% on the previous year's figure – and the SNP insisted it was part of a trend seen across much of Europe. In December 2020 figures were released revealing that 1,264 people in Scotland had died from drug overdoses in 2019 – the highest number in Europe per head and more than double the number in 2014. Sturgeon sacked her Public Health Minister Joe FitzPatrick and in April 2021 said of the crisis: "I think we took our eye off the ball."

The crisis has particularly impacted the homeless in Scotland: 216 homeless people died in Scotland in 2019 – an increase of 11% on the previous year; over half (54%) of these deaths were drug-related. Per head, Scotland's death rate among the homeless is the highest in Britain.

In August 2021 the Scottish Government announced there had been 1,339 drug deaths in the previous year – a new record high. Sturgeon tweeted that the figures were "unacceptable, each one a human tragedy", while the Scottish Liberal Democrats said: "It was Nicola Sturgeon's choice to ignore this unfolding epidemic. Issuing apologies now is too late for thousands of people. The victims of drugs and their families were failed. It is a scar on the conscience of this Scottish Government."

In July 2022 the figures for 2021 were released, revealing that 1,330 had died – nine fewer than in 2020. Annemarie Ward, chief executive at the FAVOR Scotland charity, said: "Nicola Sturgeon said she would make it her national mission to save lives – but we're still losing more than 1000 people a year. The national mission is failing."

Education performance
In 2015, Sturgeon said that she planned to make education her "defining priority" while in office. In particular, she said she hoped to focus on closing the attainment gap between the richest and poorest children in Scottish schools, telling journalists: "Let me be clear – I want to be judged on this. If you are not, as First Minister, prepared to put your neck on the line on the education of our young people then what are you prepared to. It really matters."

In 2021, Audit Scotland concluded that, "Progress on closing the poverty-related attainment gap between the most and least deprived school pupils has been limited" and fell short of the Government's aims. In some local authorities the attainment gap between the richest and poorest students had widened.

International relations
While foreign policy remains a reserved matter, Sturgeon has undertaken a number of visits to Europe, North America and Asia to promote Scotland as a place of investment and Scottish businesses to trade and do business with. Sturgeon has committed to strengthening links between Scotland and Africa.

European Union
In response to the Brexit vote, to discuss Scotland's interests, Sturgeon travelled to Brussels to meet with both Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission as well as Martin Schulz, the President of the European Parliament. In response to the UK-wide vote for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union, the Scottish Government, headed by Sturgeon, launched the Scotland's Place in Europe document, a white paper setting out the Scottish Government's aims and wishes of Scotland's role in Europe post-Brexit. The paper was sent to the central British Government to be read by Prime Minister Theresa May.

In June 2017, Sturgeon criticised the approaches taken by both Theresa May and the British Government towards the Brexit approach, claiming that May "will struggle" as she is a "difficult person to build a rapport with". In the same interview, Sturgeon committed to no independence referendum being held prior to the terms of a UK wide Brexit deal being agreed and presented.

With a view towards Brexit, Sturgeon demanded greater powers for the Scottish Parliament, arguing that Brexit is threatening Scotland's devolution settlement. With London seeking to restrict immigration to the United Kingdom, she asserted that Scotland should be able to set its own immigration policy, as well as policies relating to employment and trade.

United States

Sturgeon was highly critical of Donald Trump and his policies during the 2016 United States presidential election and had publicly backed his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. Sturgeon highlighted her disapproval of his language and views relating to sexism and misogyny, and stated upon Trump's victory that she hopes "Trump turns out to be a president different to the one he was during his campaign and reaches out to those who felt vilified by his campaign".

Sturgeon had previously stripped Trump of his ambassadorial role for Scottish businesses with the Scottish Government in the aftermath of Trump's views of an outright ban of Muslims from entering the United States. Sturgeon claimed following comments made by Trump in relation to Muslims entering the United States that he was "not fit" for the ambassadorial role with the Scottish Government.

In May 2022, Sturgeon made a trip to the United States and met with controversial Republican member of Congress Robert Aderholt, a prominent anti-abortion supporter.

Spain
In the run up to the 2017 Catalan independence referendum, Nicola Sturgeon offered her own personal backing and that of the Scottish Government to Catalonia in the holding of a referendum. The Government of Spain criticised Sturgeon, claiming she had "totally misunderstood" the situation in Spain and Catalonia. Sturgeon highlighted that Spain should follow "the shining example" that was created as part of the Edinburgh Agreement between the Scottish and British Governments that allowed Scotland to hold a legally binding referendum.

Political positions

Constitutional affairs

Scottish independence
An advocate for Scottish independence, Sturgeon has campaigned for independence from the United Kingdom since her late teens. She was categorised in 2015 as part of the SNP's gradualist wing, which believed in achieving independence through accumulating the Scottish Parliament's powers from the UK Parliament over time. In recent years, following the defeat of the Yes Scotland campaign in 2014 Scottish Independence referendum, Sturgeon has aligned herself with the new gradualist wing, who believe in only holding a second referendum if there is clear public support, such as polling being over 60%, or if there is a material change in circumstances.

Monarch

Sturgeon is a constitutional monarchist, telling journalists that it is "a model that has many merits". On the day Queen Elizabeth II became Britain's longest reigning monarch, Sturgeon travelled with her to open the Borders Railway and told a crowd of well-wishers: "She [The Queen] has carried out Her duties with dedication, wisdom and an exemplary sense of public service. The reception She has received today, demonstrates that that admiration and affection is certainly felt here in Scotland."

Following the death of the Queen Elizabeth II, Sturgeon led tributes to the Queen. She described the Queen as the "greatest constant in our national life" and added her death was "a day for reflection and remembrance" and "a day for giving thanks to The Queen for her devotion to duty and the decades of public service she gave to the people of Scotland."

Economic policy
She has at times been a critic of austerity, saying that the UK government's "austerity economics" is "morally unjustifiable and economically unsustainable". However, in 2018 she endorsed her party's Growth Commission report that pledged to reduce an independent Scotland's budget deficit as a percentage of GDP – something the Institute for Fiscal Studies concluded meant "continued austerity".

Social issues

Women's rights
Sturgeon has also campaigned on women's rights and gender equality, and is a self-described feminist; she has argued that Scotland's feminist movement is not simply symbolic, but "sends a powerful signal about equality". She has hailed Scottish feminist economist Ailsa McKay as one of her inspirations. She has at various points commented on the behaviour or attitudes of men towards women; publicly condemning Donald Trump, Tony Abbott and former Labour MSP Neil Findlay. However, she defended her party's leader Alex Salmond from accusations of sexism. After Salmond had told Conservative MP Anna Soubry, "Behave yourself, woman" in 2015, Sturgeon said: "The fundamental question, 'does that language indicate that Alex Salmond is sexist?' Absolutely not, there's no man I know who is less sexist."

Commenting on the need for men to challenge their friends' misogynistic behaviour, Sturgeon told the Scottish Parliament in 2021: "I would say to all men in this chamber and all men across the country — challenge it [misogyny] if it's on the part of other men you may know, challenge your own behaviour and then let's collectively, as a society, turn the page and turn the corner so that women can live free of the fear of harassment, abuse, intimidation, violence and, in the worst cases, death."

Transgender rights
Ahead of the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, Sturgeon pledged to review and reform the way that trans people change their legal gender. However, proposed changes to Scotland's Gender Recognition Act that would have allowed people to change their identity through self-identification, rather than a medical process, were paused in June 2019. Critics of the changes within the SNP had accused Sturgeon of being "out of step" on the issue, and expressed concerns that the reforms would be open to abuse and allow predatory men into women's spaces. The Scottish Government said it had paused the legislation in order to find "maximum consensus" on the issue and commentators described the issue as having divided the SNP like no other, with many dubbing the debate a "civil war".

In April 2020, the reforms were again delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In January 2021, a former trans officer in the SNP's LGBT wing, Teddy Hope, quit the party, claiming it was one of the "core hubs of transphobia in Scotland". Large numbers of LGBT activists followed suit and Sturgeon released a video message in which she said that transphobia is "not acceptable" and said she hoped they would re-join the party.

In the 2021 SNP manifesto, Sturgeon committed the party once again to reform the Gender Recognition Act and in August that year included the commitment in her agreement with the Scottish Greens on power-sharing. In September 2021, Sturgeon was accused of shutting down debate about gender reforms after she described concerns about gender recognition reform as "not valid" and campaign groups and analysts complained that their concerns were being ignored.

On 22 December 2022, the Scottish Parliament voted 86 to 39 to pass the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill which was introduced by Sturgeon's government, but the bill was vetoed by the UK Government.

In 2023, Sturgeon was criticised in connection with the Isla Bryson case, in which a transgender woman who had raped two women when named Adam Graham began self-identifying as a woman after being charged. Bryson was sent to a women's prison before being moved to a men's prison. Sturgeon refused to say if she regards Bryson as a man or woman, though she used female pronouns when talking about Bryson.

Nuclear weapons
Sturgeon has campaigned against replacing the Trident nuclear weapons system.

Views on Conservative government policies
At the SNP's 2022 annual party conference in Aberdeen, Sturgeon stated "I detest the Tories and everything they stand for" in an interview on the BBC. She was accused of using "dangerous language" and when asked if she regretted the comments, Sturgeon simply replied "No" and emphasised the point she detested Tory policies and not supporters or voters.

Sturgeon has been highly critical towards the leadership of Boris Johnson's government. Following Johnson's appointment as British prime minister, she claimed he "rambled" in his first speech outside 10 Downing Street and suggested he was "blame shifting". In July 2019, the prime minister met Sturgeon at her official residence, Bute House, where Johnson was "booed and heckled" by protesters. This was the only occasion when he made a formal visit to Edinburgh as he declined future invites by the first minister. Sturgeon claimed Johnson's "fragile male ego" stopped him from meeting her. Sturgeon's attempts to request approval for a second referendum on Scottish independence were declined by the Johnson administration. Speaking after Johnson had resigned in 2022, Sturgeon said that he was the only prime minister she had worked with who was "a disgrace to the office".

Post premiership (2023–present)
Upon her resignation as First Minister, Sturgeon returned to the backbench, where she continues to serve as the MSP for Glasgow Southside. On 7 September 2023, she made her first speech in parliament since her arrest.

SNP finance fraud inquiry and arrest

In the latter half of Sturgeon's leadership of the SNP, a Police Scotland fraud inquiry was launched over money that had been raised by the party for independence campaigning was spent properly. She dismissed claims the investigation was a result of her resignation as party leader and first minister. On 5 April 2023, Sturgeon's husband and the party's former chief executive, Peter Murrell, was arrested at their Glasgow residence and their home was searched amid the ongoing investigation. The SNP's HQ in Edinburgh and several other addresses related to party officials were also searched by police. Murrell was later released without charge and Sturgeon pulled out of a UN climate event.

On 16 April, a meeting of the party's ruling body in March 2021 was leaked by a member to the Daily Mail, which showed Sturgeon warn members to be "very careful" about suggesting claims there was financial problems within the SNP. The following day, it was revealed Sturgeon would work remotely from parliament as a spokesperson stated: "in order to ensure the focus of this week is on the new First Minister setting out his priorities for the people of Scotland, Ms Sturgeon has always intended to participate remotely and intends to return to Holyrood in the near future.". In that same week, the SNP's treasurer, Colin Beatie, was arrested and later released without charge. Beatie subsequently resigned from the role. Sturgeon's successor, Humza Yousaf, has had calls by opposition for her party membership to be suspended, however, he has rejected these calls.

Large speculation that Sturgeon could be arrested for police questioning amid the ongoing inquiry came to fruition when, on 11 June 2023, Sturgeon was arrested by Police Scotland over the investigation into the finances of her SNP party, which reportedly diverted £600,000 meant for the Scottish Independence campaign elsewhere. She was released without charge pending further investigation later that day.

Public image and legacy
At the beginning of Sturgeon's political career, she was often regarded as a "nippy sweetie", Scottish slang for the "sharp-tongued and strong-minded". The term was used to describe Sturgeon's "fierce" attitude.

Sturgeon was elected leader of the SNP at a time in which the party enjoyed a surge in membership. In 2015, Sturgeon was described in a Daily Mail headline as the "most dangerous woman in Britain". It followed her party's unprecedented gains in the 2015 general election, which questioned the future of the union.

Sturgeon plans to publish a memoir in 2023.

Awards and acknowledgements
Sturgeon won the Scottish Politician of the Year Award in 2008, 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2019.

Forbes magazine ranked Sturgeon as the 50th most powerful woman in the world in 2016 and 2nd in the United Kingdom. She was recognized as one of the BBC's 100 women of 2014. In 2015, BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour assessed Sturgeon to be the most powerful and influential woman in the United Kingdom.

Personal life

Sturgeon lives in Broomhouse, Glasgow with her husband, Peter Murrell, who is the former chief executive officer of the SNP. The couple have been in a relationship since 2003. They got engaged on 29 January 2010, and were married on 16 July 2010 at Òran Mór in Glasgow.

Sturgeon is known for her love of fiction and says reading, "gives me a lot of joy and helps with the stresses and strains of work".

Her mother Joan was the SNP Provost of North Ayrshire council, where she was councillor for the Irvine East ward from 2007 until 2016.

In 2016, Sturgeon disclosed that she had miscarried five years previously.

In May 2022, Sturgeon tested positive for COVID-19. In line with Government guidance, she completed a self-isolation period.

See also
List of First Ministers of Scotland

Notes

References

External links

 SNP profile

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1970 births
20th-century Scottish women politicians
Alumni of the University of Glasgow
Deputy First Ministers of Scotland
Female heads of government in the United Kingdom
Women heads of government of non-sovereign entities
First Ministers of Scotland
Health ministers of Scotland
Leaders of the Scottish National Party
Scottish LGBT rights activists
Living people
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
Members of the Scottish Parliament 1999–2003
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2003–2007
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2007–2011
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2011–2016
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2016–2021
Members of the Scottish Parliament 2021–2026
Members of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow constituencies
People from Irvine, North Ayrshire
Scottish feminists
Scottish National Party MSPs
Scottish nationalists
Scottish monarchists
Scottish people of English descent
Scottish solicitors
Scottish women activists
Scottish women lawyers
Transgender rights activists
Women members of the Scottish Government
People from Dreghorn

Nicola Sturgeon


Neboder France (fr. Tour France), neboder je u Parizu, glavnom gradu Francuske. Smješten je u gradskoj poslovnoj četvrti La Défense na obali Seine.

Neboder je, nakon Défense 2000, najviša stambena zgrada u Île-de-Franceu.

Vidi još
 Popis najviših nebodera svijeta
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France (neboder)


Plastforurening, plastikforurening eller kunststofforurening betegner ophobning af plast i naturen, der sker bevidst eller ubevidst, med den efterfølgende nedbrydning til mindre og mindre plastpartikler. Plastforureningen er til fare for miljøet og berører både dyr, planter og mennesker. Plast er således en af de største trusler, vores oceaner står over for i dag, og forårsager utallige skader på økosystemer, enorme økonomiske skader på kystsamfund og udgør en potentiel sundhedstrussel for mere end tre milliarder mennesker, der er afhængige af fisk og skaldyr.

Plast-nedbrydningspartiklerne inddeles i makroplast, mesoplast, mikroplast og nanoplast. Siden plast blev alment tilgængelig er forureningens omfang tiltaget, korreleret med hvor billig og holdbar plast har vist sig at være. Man er nu blevet opmærksom på at plastforurening er et globalt miljøproblem, specielt det enorme omfang forureningen af oceanerne har antaget.

I betragtning af mængden af plastmateriale, som ikke kan nedbrydes, vil det forårsage kaos i miljøet, hvilket forårsager langsigtede problemer for planter, dyr såvel som mennesker. Havdyr fanges og indvikles i makroplast og mindre stykker makroplast forveksles som føde der kan spises og det medfører fatale ophobninger af plast i dyrenes mave-tarmkanal. Plastaffald forårsager døden for mere end en million havfugle hvert år, såvel som mere end 100.000 havpattedyr.

Mindre plastpartikler spises også af havdyr og føres igennem fødekæden. Mennesker indtager et stort antal mikroplastpartikler uden at vide det. Ingen ved endnu hvilke følger dette vil få for dyr eller mennesker - også set i lyset af de giftige og hormonforstyrrende kemiske bestanddele som de fleste plasttyper består af. Desuden akkumulerer plastpartikler langsomt-nedbrydelige organiske forbindelser, de såkaldte evighedskemikalier, fra miljøet som polyklorerede bifenyler og andre skadelige stoffer.

Forurening af mennesker og fødekæden

Plastforureningen af jorden inklusivt vand, luft, mennesker og fødekædens dyr og planter er meget dårligt belyst og endnu mindre er følgevirkningerne, men der tegner sig et billede af udbredt forurening.

En undersøgelse i 2019 skønner at amerikanere indtager fra 39.000 til 52.000 plastpartikler om året med føden og yderligere et stort antal i indåndingsluften, så der gennemsnitligt indtages mere den 74.000 plastpartikler om året. Babyer indtager måske meget mere igennem mad tilberedt i plastbeholdere af polypropylen, der afgiver mange mikroplastpartikler ved opvarmning og sterilisering, i millionvis af partikler pr. liter.

Der er også fundet mikroplast i det danske drikkevand og i drikkevand på plastflasker fra ni forskellige lande er der fundet et meget højt indhold af plastpartikler.

En tysk undersøgelse i 2019 godtgør at næsten alle børn er forurenet med blødgørere, deraf to med fastsatte grænseværdier, der er fundet overskredet, hvilket er bekymrende bl.a. på grund af blødgørernes karakter som hormonforstyrrende stoffer

I 2022 er mikroplast blevet fundet i menneskers blod for første gang med plastpartikler i næsten 80 % af de testede mennesker.

Plasttyper

I naturen er almindelig plast kemisk bestandigt, men nedbrydes til mindre og mindre partikler
 Makroplast eller makroplast
 Plastfibre eller plastfibre
 Mesoplast
 Mikroplast defineret som plaststykker mindre end 5 mm, andre definerer mikroplast som partikler mellem 1 og 5 mm.
 Små mikroplastpartikler på 0,01 mm (dvs. 10 mikrometer)
 Nanoplast defineres som partikler i nanostørrelse, dvs. mindre end 0,0001 mm (dvs. 100 nm)

Forureningens omfang

Tilsammen producerer danskerne 340.000 ton plastikaffald om året svarende til 60 kilo per person. I 2019 kortlægges plastforureningens omfang i Danmark ved en storstilet naturvidenskabsfestival for skolebørn.

Plastforureningen af oceanerne var det første iøjnefaldende eksempel på plastforureningen, på grund af opkoncentreringen i de store gyrer (strømhvirvler). Nu er den nået et enormt stort omfang, men da det er vanskeligt at udføre nøjagtige målinger og beregninger, kendes det nøjagtige omfang af plastforureningen ikke. Der producers årligt 360 millioner ton plast på verdensplan, og deraf skønner man at 8 millioner ton ender i oceanerne stigende til over 17 millioner ton i 2025. En undersøgelse i 2014 anslog partikelforureningen at være på 5,25 • 1012 (dvs. 5,25 billioner) partikler, på en samlet vægt af 269.000 ton deraf 93.000-236.000 ton som mikroplast..

Yangtze, Indus, Den gule flod, Hai, Nilen, Ganges, Pearl, Amur, Niger og Mekongfloderne bidrager med 95% af plasten, der ender i oceanerne.

I 2017 anslås at havforureningen er på mellem 4 og 12 millioner ton plast hvert år, og at tallet forventes at blive fordoblet over de næste ti år. Selv dybhavsrejer er forurenet med mikroplast.

Selv meget afsides beliggende lokaliteter som øen Henderson i det sydlige Stillehav undgår ikke menneskeskabt forurening, og det anslås at denne ø er dækket af 37 millioner stykker plast - mellem 21 og 671 stk. plast pr. kvadratyard.

Mere hjemlige strande bærer også vidnesbyrd om forureningens omfang.

Forureningen med mikroplast i Danmark er bedømt at være mellem 6.100 og 15.400 ton årligt.

En underkendt kilde til miljøpåvirkning gennem forurening er cigaretfiltre, der består af celluloseacetat, der er ti år om at nedbrydes i naturen.

De skandinaviske farvande

Plastforureningen af de skandinaviske farvande blev undersøgt i 2010. Den viste sig at være på 2000 plastpartikler pr m3 og stigende i de indre farvande. I den Botniske bugt ved Umeå fandt man 104.780 plastpartikler og 14.620 egentlige plastfibre per kubikmeter havvand.

Oceanerne

Plastaffald fanges af vind og havstrømme og føres frem til de store strømhvirvler i oceanernes midte, også kaldet gyrer:
 Den nordatlantiske gyre
 Den sydatlantiske gyre
 Den nordlige Stillehavsgyre, forureningen omtales som Affaldsøen i Stillehavet
 Den sydlige Stillehavsgyre
 Det indiske oceans gyre

Fem lande bidrager mere til havforureningen med plast end resten af verden

Plastforureningen af oceanerne er så fyldig at den omtales som kontinental
:
"Verdens 8. superkontinent af plastic er blevet en bizar realitet. Plasticaffaldet består af alt mellem himmel og jord, herunder lightere, kuglepenne, kapsler, engangsflasker, bolde, poser, dunke, badedyr, kajakker, emballage, tandbørster, engangskrus, nylon, bestik, diverse PVC/polystyrenforbindelser, LEGO-klodser, reb, fiskenet m.v."

Forureningen i Stillehavet er omtalt som Affaldsøen i Stillehavet. En undersøgelse i 2010 fandt 750.000 plastpartikler pr km3 i overfladen
.

Forureningen af landjorden

Man ved ikke hvor meget plastaffald der bevidst eller ubevidst ender i naturen, men man ved for eksempel at det tager omkring 500 år for en plastpose at blive nedbrudt. Der vides heller ikke meget om hvilke kredsløb plastaffaldet indgår i, til skade for miljøet, dyr og mennesker. Som med havdyr, fanges mindre dyr i plastaffald, der er skyld i deres død

Bekæmpelse af plastforurening

En effektiv bekæmpelse af plastforureningen vil indebære omfattende genbrug af plast og lukning af alle kilder til forureningen

Nogle tiltag til bekæmpelse af plastforureningen:
 Nytænkning om brugen af plast.
 Nye typer plast der er totalt genbrugelige.
 Biologisk nedbrydning. Mikrobiologisk nedbrydning af plast. Man har sågar fundet plast-spisende larver.
 Enzymatisk nedbrydning.
 FAST-PETase (efter en. functional, active, stable, tolerant, polymer, polyethylene, terephthalate)
 Omdannelse til brændstof.
 Opsamling af plast i oceanerne for at formindske mængden af plast, der allerede er i naturen.

Se også

 Død zone
 Fødekæde
 Havforurening
 Luftforurening
 Vandforurening
 The Ocean Cleanup

Henvisninger

Eksterne links

 WE MADE PLASTIC. WE DEPEND ON IT. NOW WE'RE DROWNING IN IT. National Geographic 2018
 Plastic Change - den danske organisation bag bekæmpelse af den globale plastikforurening
 Det forsvinder jo? 2016
 Danmarks Naturfredningsforenings anbefalinger: Affald i havet koster dyreliv
 Kæmpe affalds-ø opdaget i Atlanterhavet 2010
 Oceaner af plastic
 Did a 19-Year-Old Really Just Solve One of Earth's Biggest Environmental Problems?
 Gigantisk plastik-ø i Stillehavet skal kortlægges. Ingeniøren 2009
 Microplastic pollution prevalent in lakes, too. Science Daily 2013
 How Big Is the "Great Pacific Garbage Patch"? Science vs. Myth
 The 'Great Pacific Garbage Patch' Is Ballooning, 87,000 Tons of Plastic and Counting. NYTimes 2018
 Melati and Isabel Wijsen: Our campaign to ban plastic bags in Bali. TED talks

Forurening
Miljø og samfund
Jordens biologiske miljø
Miljø
Miljøkemi
Vandforurening

Plastforurening


Toppserien 2016 var den 30. sæson af kvindernes topliga i norsk fodbold. LSK Kvinner FK var forsvarende mestre og klarede at forsvare deres titel.

Stillingen
Medkilla vandt nedrykningskampen 4–3 og 2–0 og forblev i ligaen.

Topscorere
Pr. 25. december 2016.

Referencer

Fodbold i 2016
Fodbold i Norge
Toppserien

Toppserien 2016


Akdam, Adana ilinin Kozan ilçesine bağlı bir mahalledir.

Nüfus

Dış bağlantılar

Kozan'ın mahalleleri

Akdam, Kozan


Yang Zhaoxuan, nascida em 11 de fevereiro de 1995, é uma tenista profissional chinesa. Ela alcançou sua melhor classificação de duplas no 9º lugar mundial no ranking de duplas WTA em 30 de janeiro de 2023.

Yang ganhou seis títulos de duplas no WTA Tour e um título de duplas do WTA Challenger. Em 14 de setembro de 2015, ela alcançou seu melhor ranking de simples no 151º lugar do mundo. Ela também tem três títulos de simples e 12 de duplas no Circuito ITF.

Carreira

2014
Yang fez sua estreia no WTA Tour no Shenzhen Open de 2014, em parceria com Ye Qiuyu em duplas. A dupla perdeu a partida da primeira rodada contra as terceiras "sementes" Irina Buryachok e Oksana Kalashnikova.

2017
Em 2017, ela chegou à final do Wuhan Open ao lado de Shuko Aoyama. Elas perderam para Latisha Chan e Martina Hingis na final. No WTA Elite Trophy, ela perdeu as duas partidas no round robin junto com Han Xinyun.

2018
No Aberto da França de 2018, Yang ao lado de Chan Hao-ching alcançou sua primeira semifinal do Grand Slam, mas depois perdeu para Eri Hozumi e Makoto Ninomiya.

2019
No Torneio de Wimbledon de 2019, ela chegou à semifinal em duplas mistas ao lado de Matwé Middelkoop, após superar a dupla de cabeça-de-chave Nicole Melichar e Bruno Soares. Eles perderam a partida da semifinal para Jeļena Ostapenko e Robert Lindstedt.

2021
Em março de 2021, Yang chegou à final do Campeonato de Dubai junto com Xu Yifan, mas perdeu para Alexa Guarachi e Darija Jurak.

2022
Em 2022, no WTA 1000 em Indian Wells, ela conquistou o maior título de sua carreira em duplas com Xu Yifan. Ela se classificou para a WTA Finals de 2022 com a parceira Yifan.

2023
Ela chegou às quartas de final no Australian Open de 2023 em parceria com Chan Hao-ching.

Ligações externas

Tenistas da China

Yang Zhaoxuan


The Esquiline Hill (; ;  ) is one of the Seven Hills of Rome. Its southernmost cusp is the Oppius (Oppian Hill).

Etymology
The origin of the name Esquiline is still under much debate.  One view is that the hill was named after the abundance of  (Italian oaks) growing there.  Another view is that, during Rome's infancy, the Capitolium, the Palatinum, and the northern fringes of the Caelian were the most-populated areas of the city, whose inhabitants were considered  ("in-towners"); those who inhabited the external regions – Aurelian, Oppius, Cispius, Fagutal – were considered   ("suburbanites").

History
The Esquiline Hill includes three prominent spurs, which are sometimes called "hills" as well:

Cispian (Cispius) – northern spur
Oppian (Oppius) – southern spur
Fagutal (Fagutalis) – western spur

Rising above the valley in which was later built the Colosseum, the Esquiline was a fashionable residential district.

According to Livy, the settlement on the Esquiline was expanded during the reign of Servius Tullius, Rome's sixth king, in the 6th century BC. The king also moved his residence to the hill in order to increase its respectability.

The political advisor and art patron Maecenas (70–8 BC) sited his gardens, the first in the Hellenistic-Persian garden style in Rome, on the Esquiline Hill, atop the Servian Wall and its adjoining necropolis. It contained terraces, libraries and other aspects of Roman culture. At the Oppius, Nero (37 AD–68 AD) confiscated property to build his extravagant, mile-long Golden House, and later still Trajan (53–117) constructed his bath complex, both of whose remains are visible today.  The 3rd-century Horti Liciniani, a group of gardens (including the relatively well-preserved nymphaeum formerly identified as the non-extant Temple of Minerva Medica), were probably constructed on the Esquiline Hill. Farther to the northeast, at the summit of the Cispius, is the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

In 1781, the first known copy of the marble statue of a discus thrower – the Discobolus of Myron – was discovered on the Roman property of the Massimo family, the Villa Palombara, on the Esquiline Hill. The famous Esquiline Treasure, now in the British Museum, was found on the Esquiline Hill.

Namesakes
The tiny hamlet of El Esquilinchuche in Honduras is named after the Esquiline Hill.

See also

 Janiculum Hill
 Monte Mario
 Pincian Hill
 Vatican Hill
 Velian Hill

References

Seven hills of Rome
Rome R. XV Esquilino

Esquiline Hill


Catahoula  may refer to:

 Catahoula Cur, an American dog breed
 Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Catahoula