Business leaders have urged Nicola Sturgeon's successor as First Minister to put SMEs and businesses at the heart of their work.
Ms Sturgeon said she was stepping down as First Minister and as leader of the SNP, insisting the time "was right for me, for my party and for the country". She said her decision would also “free” the SNP to take a decision on how to pursue independence “without worrying about the perceived implications for my leadership”.
The Federation of Small Businesses’ Scotland Policy Chair, Andrew McRae, said: "We always enjoyed a constructive relationship with the First Minister throughout her record-breaking term – a period which was dominated by some of the greatest challenges our economy and communities have faced in decades.
