Sturgeon recalls panic attack over referendum plan

ODN

Nicola Sturgeon revealed she had a “panic attack” while compiling the SNP’s 2014 referendum White Paper, describing it as “so unwieldy” and “difficult”. She accused then First Minister Alex Salmond of showing little interest, claiming he had not read it and calling his decision to go on a trade mission to China instead “an abdication of responsibility”.   Report by Covellm. Like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/itn and follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/itn

Transcript

00:00I remember an evening which I just suddenly had this overwhelming sense of impossibility.

00:06I can't get this to the point it needs to be at.

00:10It's so unwieldy, it's so difficult, and I just remember having what I can only describe as a panic attack.

00:18I was sobbing on the floor of my office at home, and just my heart was racing.

00:23And it was at this point that Alex Salmond was really showing very little interest in the white paper.

00:30He really didn't engage in the work of the drafting or the compilation of the white paper at all.

00:36He was the leader, he was first minister, and he hadn't read it.

00:40He hadn't read it, this crucial run-up?

00:43He hadn't read it, he'd maybe read bits, I don't even know if he'd read bits of it.

00:46I knew I was going to have to sit him down and say, look, you're going to have to read this,

00:49and you're going to have to tell me now if there are bits you want to change, because it has to be signed off.

00:53He told me he was going on a trade mission to China.

00:56I don't think I'd ever felt as much cold fury at him as I did in that moment.

01:02It just seemed to me like an abdication of responsibility.

01:06I'll see you guys in the next video.

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