FM: Energy bank helped during crisis

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon

Nicola Sturgeon has credited a “deep reserve of energy” for helping her lead the country’s response to the coronavirus crisis.

The First Minister delivered the Scottish Government’s daily coronavirus briefing since they began in March and admits the relentless workload can take a toll.

In an interview with Alastair Campbell, former Downing Street director of communications under Tony Blair and mental health campaigner, she admitted that she has “ups and downs”.

She said: “Like everybody, I have days where I feel things are more on top of me than others and days where I am in a happier disposition.

“But generally, I am able to keep a reasonable equilibrium around all of that. I have, and I am very blessed in this, and long may it continue, a deep reserve of energy – physical and mental energy – and a resilience that it has stood me in good stead. But I don’t underestimate the impact of something like this.”

She added that politicians also “need to occasionally remember that you are human”. The First Minister revealed reading was her way of escaping the pressure of her job, saying: “I tend to take myself away from the stresses and strains of day-to-day life and work by losing myself in the plot of a good novel.”

The First Minister admits, however, that her stress levels rise if her bookshelves, which are alphabetically-organised, get jumbled.