Member of Parliament Joanna Cherry has responded to criticism from former Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon by questioning Sturgeon's openness about her sexuality and suggesting Sturgeon lacks a meaningful career.

Speaking at an event in Edinburgh, Cherry stated, "Don’t worry, Nicola, I’m not obsessed with you. Unlike you, I have a very happy and meaningful career to fall back on." She added, "And also, perhaps in contrast to her, I have a very strong and happy relationship with my girlfriend, and I’m open about my sexuality, and have been for a very long time."

Cherry, an accomplished KC, suggested Sturgeon "flirts and teases us with the idea that she might be a lesbian" but lacks significant involvement in gay rights advocacy. Cherry also predicted that the Scottish National Party (SNP) might distance itself from Sturgeon, whom she described as an "embarrassment to the party."

Cherry, a vocal critic of Sturgeon's handling of gender reforms and the SNP's former justice policies, made these remarks during a podcast recording. Sturgeon had previously described Cherry as having an "unrequited obsession" with her and dismissed Cherry's book, stating, "One of the things that distresses me most the older I get is that realisation of all of the books I’ll never get to read. Why on earth would I spend time reading one that’s s***?"

Cherry indicated that she would not use such language publicly, regardless of disagreements. She speculated that Sturgeon might be feeling overwhelmed and suggested that Sturgeon avoids addressing criticisms by making rude remarks about Cherry whenever her name arises.

"I'd like to reassure her that I have no interest in her beyond thinking it’s very important for Scotland and my former political party and the independence movement to analyse what has gone wrong over the last ten years, to look carefully at the various scandals that have happened, and to address them so that we can all move on," Cherry said.

In her memoir update, Sturgeon stated she had "never considered sexuality, my own included, to be binary." Cherry, addressing this, remarked, "As she flirts and teases us with the idea that she might be a lesbian, what I would say to her is, You need to think about what you owe the generations of lesbians and gay men who fought so it was acceptable in this country, Scotland and the United Kingdom, to be gay and to have equal rights. To realise our protections under the Equalities Act are just as important as those of trans people."

Sturgeon's recent comments also criticized the SNP's Holyrood election campaign under John Swinney for lacking "vision or big-picture thinking," leading to internal party conflict. Cherry, who is no longer a member of the SNP, called this "astonishing" given Swinney's loyalty to Sturgeon.

Cherry elaborated on Swinney's efforts to defend Sturgeon, particularly regarding her husband Peter Murrell's involvement in an SNP embezzlement scandal. "John has spent a lot of political capital defending Nicola," Cherry stated.

She also mentioned Sturgeon's criticism of Mairi McAllan and Jenny Gilruth, colleagues within Sturgeon's inner circle. Cherry speculated that Sturgeon might be preparing to resign from the SNP before being compelled to do so, due to becoming a liability to the party.

Cherry, who served as an MP from 2015 to 2024, indicated she might consider standing for election again, but currently has no immediate political ambitions. She characterized Holyrood as "parochial" due to its members.

Representatives for the SNP and Sturgeon were contacted for comment.