Politician

Thatcher was the motivation for my entire political career. I hated everything she stood for.

I like Indian takeaway.

Scotland has a great deal to offer the world in terms of our approach to key economic and social issues.

I am the granddaughter of an English woman. I love England and her people and, regardless of politics, consider you to be family... and always will.

One of the attributes Glasgow is best known for all over the world is the friendliness of her people.

If Scotland was independent, we'd be the 14th richest country in the developed world.

I think you should always aim for more.

The Scottish Government will continue to do all it can to get people into work.

Parties that win elections should form the government, not parties that lose elections.

Because of lower life expectancy in Scotland - something that we are working hard to improve - the average woman will get ?11,000 less in pension payments than counterparts in the rest of the U.K., even though she will pay exactly the same in contributions.

For parents - women in particular - good quality, affordable childcare is vital.

The importance of education is ingrained in Scottish history.

My pledge to you is that the SNP will put women and gender equality right at the heart of the Westminster agenda.

Under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act, it is possible for other parties to change the direction of a government without bringing a government down.

Ed Balls has made it crystal clear that, left to its own devices, a Labour government would simply carry on with the same budget policies as the Tories.

I am quite driven. I know what I think, and I know what I want to achieve, but I also hope that people who are asked to describe me would describe me as pretty down-to-earth, loyal, friendly. The more experience I have got in politics, I think the more I have allowed me to shine through.

There are lots of jobs and investment in Scotland dependent on our membership of the E.U. single market.

Equality and prosperity shouldn't be seen as enemies of each other, but as partners. One reinforces the other.

There is nothing in your background that inherently holds you back or means you can't achieve what others can achieve. You are the master of your own fate, and if you work hard, you can do what you want.

I'm the leader of the SNP. I think you would expect me to say I would vote SNP in whatever constituency I lived in.