Under-fire leader has had plenty of good results during her time in charge

Sir, – It was no surprise that John McTernan was partisan in his assessment of Nicola Sturgeon as the longest holder of the post of first minister (Courier, May 25).

Certainly her government’s competence over the running of the census, the railways and ferries can be called seriously into question.

It is still important to remember that Ms Sturgeon has strode the political stage in office now for 15 years. She was not always submerged by the shadow of her predecessor Alex Salmond. She played a key role in the early years of the SNP administration on a number of matters.

They include the abolition of prescription charges (a Labour Achilles heel for decades), the introduction of free eye tests, ending tuition fees for undergraduates domiciled in Scotland, the continuation of the free personal care and concessionary travel schemes and a council tax freeze.

She also found time to conduct negotiations on an independence referendum held in 2014 and helped establish the case for and completion of the Queensferry Crossing.

Her own time as first minister has been bedevilled by the Covid pandemic and the endless saga of Brexit. But she can still point to advances in social security provision and childcare, free bus travel for young people and improvements to the rail network.

For some this will not compensate for the slow advances in narrowing the education attainment gap and gaffes over the “named person” scheme. Growth of the Scottish economy has not been as fast as many of her strongest supporters predicted.

But the reason for her relative success at the polls amounts to more than just personality.

It is because many people who do not support independence recognise that she is best equipped to stand up for Scotland.

In a difficult era her government has used what limited powers it has to protect living standards and that is something John McTernan should be large enough to admit.