Nicola Sturgeon: Westminster has been in a state of chaos since the EU referendum

This week has demonstrated more starkly than perhaps ever before why Scotland is not properly served by being governed from Westminster and would be better off as an independent country.

At a time when UK ministers should be focused on tackling the cost of living crisis affecting millions, it has instead been a government in a state of collapse.

That is due to another bout of the civil war in the Tory party which now seems to be a semi-permanent feature of the Conservatives.

One can only imagine what those looking at the UK from around the rest of the world must think of the shambles that passes for governance these days at Westminster.

But this isn’t an isolated episode or a one-off – Westminster has been in a state of ongoing chaos since the EU referendum result six years ago, and whoever comes next as prime minister will be the fourth PM I have faced as first minister.

The Tories’ move to oust Boris Johnson is merely the latest chapter in a seemingly never-ending psychodrama that may entertain journalists and commentators but which does nothing to address the issues ordinary people face every day.

And removing him from Downing Street won’t even begin to solve the deep-seated problems that have made the UK one of the most unequal societies in the developed world and which see it outperformed on a whole range of economic performance and wellbeing measures by most neighbouring European countries, many of them similar in size to Scotland.

So while Boris Johnson’s resignation is welcome, for Scotland it changes very little – we are still controlled by a dysfunctional, chaotic and corrupt Westminster system that saw fit to elevate him to the office of prime minister.

Whoever replaces him, Scotland will still be saddled with a Tory government we didn’t vote for, imposing a Brexit we soundly rejected, and inflicting damaging policies against Scotland’s will.

And Labour under Keir Starmer offer what is increasingly an imitation of the Tories. His move to definitely rule out not just a return to the EU but even single market membership was proof – if any further were really needed – that the only route back into Europe for Scotland is now with independence.

The problems run much deeper than one individual. It’s beyond any doubt that the Westminster system is broken and the only way to escape it is to become an independent country.