STURGEON: BORIS IS A F***ING CLOWN

Her former chief of staff explains frustration with 'incompetent' PM Johnson in pandemic

- PAUL HUTCHEON

NICOLA Sturgeon branded Boris Johnson a "f***ing clown" after becoming exasperated over the Tory prime minister's handling of the pandemic.

The former first minister's outburst was contained in a text message sent to her then chief of staff, Liz Lloyd, who gave evidence yesterday to the UK Covid Inquiry, which is sitting in Edinburgh.

In the exchange, Sturgeon also said his "incompetence" was "offending" her.

The WhatsApp messages between Lloyd and Sturgeon related to former UK prime minister Johnson announcing another national lockdown on October 31, 2020.

Sturgeon said his address was "f***ing excruciating" and that the UK communications were "awful".

She also told Lloyd: "His utter incompetence in every sense is now offending me on behalf of politicians everywhere."

Lloyd said she was "offended" on behalf of special advisers everywhere. Sturgeon replied: "He is a f***ing clown."

In separate messages, Lloyd told Sturgeon she wanted a "good old-fashioned rammy" with the UK Government so she could "think about something other than sick people".

Lloyd told Sturgeon she had "set a timetable for the UK Government to reply to the Scottish Government about furlough as a "purely political" move in the messages between herself and the former first minister on November 1, 2020.

Sturgeon wrote: "Yeah, I get it. And it might be worth doing.