Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has announced that he intends to step down after Scotland rejected independence.
Mr Salmond also revealed that he will not be standing for reelection as leader of the SNP at the party conference in Perth on 13 November.
However, speaking to media at Bute House in Edinburgh, Mr Salmond said that although he would be stepping down, the dream of Scottish independence ‘shall never die’.
‘I am immensely proud of the campaign that Yes Scotland fought and particularly of the 1.6m voters who rallied to that cause,’ he said.
‘We lost the referendum vote but Scotland can still carry the political initiative. For me as leader my time is nearly over but for Scotland the campaign continues and the dream shall never die.’
He added: ‘I I have no intention of retiring from Scottish politics – there are a large number of things you are able to do when you’re not first minister or leader of a political party.’
Mr Salmond said there were a number of ‘suitable candidates’ for leader of the party, although current deputy first minister and deputy SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon would be seen as the clear frontrunner.
The ‘No’ vote defeated the ‘Yes’ vote in Thursday’s referendum by 2,001,926 to 1,617,989 – a national split of 55% to 45%.
