Scotland’s former first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, who unexpectedly resigned this yr and later turned the topic of a police investigation, made one other uncommon announcement on Monday.
“So this occurred right now,” she said on Instagram. “On the tender age of 53, I handed my driving take a look at (first time!!).”
The expertise took her “properly out of any notion of a consolation zone,” Ms. Sturgeon added, “however hopefully proves that it’s by no means too late in life to do one thing new.”
For Ms. Sturgeon, getting her driver’s license was little doubt a welcome respite from different current headlines.
She resigned her post as Scotland’s chief in February, citing exhaustion and her standing as a polarizing determine as her causes. Then in June, she was arrested by cops investigating the funds of the Scottish Nationwide Social gathering, which she had led because it dominated the nation’s politics.
Ms. Sturgeon was launched and has denied wrongdoing.
The driving-test milestone highlighted the sheltered, chauffeured way of life of heads of state who typically journey in well-secured autos. It additionally was a reminder of simply how arduous such checks are in the UK in comparison with different international locations, together with america.
Within the U.S., attaining a driver’s license is usually thought-about a ceremony of passage for 16-year-olds, lots of whom take a considerably simple street take a look at, finishing easy stops and turns and demonstrating that they’ll reverse and parallel park.
In Britain, nevertheless, the checks seem to be more extensive, and one maneuver sounds notably difficult for any newbie: The driving force is requested to tug up on the right-hand aspect of the street, reverse for round two car-lengths after which rejoin visitors.
Rob Harper, the chair of the Affiliation of Accepted Driving Instructors, advised The Telegraph in 2019: “I feel it’s a harmful maneuver, and so do lots of my members.”
Through the driving take a look at in Britain, potential drivers will likely be on the street for round 40 minutes. In California, against this, the behind-the-wheel driving talent examination takes about 20 minutes, the state’s Division of Motor Automobiles stated in an electronic mail.
The move price for the driving take a look at in Britain was 47 p.c from January to March final yr, down one proportion level from the earlier quarter, according to data from the British transport division. That passing price prompted a marketing campaign from the division that urged learner drivers to be test-ready or transfer their take a look at dates again.
Driving examiners, the division stated, “needed to do issues similar to brake or steer the automobile in 1 in 5 failed checks.”
The division additionally really useful that learners discover an accepted driving teacher. However in america, it’s not unusual for fogeys to substitute as de facto driving instructors.
Nonetheless, america will not be precisely an instance for driving-test readiness. In California, the passing price for the driving force’s license data take a look at is 41 p.c up to now this yr, and 67 p.c for the driving expertise take a look at.
Stringent necessities to acquire a driver’s license are additionally the norm in different European international locations. In Germany, the driving examination features a part on idea, according to Inc. Magazine. Even the price to get a license in Germany is extra prohibitive, starting from $2,000 to $3,700. In Britain, the cost is about 129 pounds in statutory charges, or about $158.
Ms. Sturgeon stated her driving teacher had been instrumental in her classes and somebody whom she “may belief and really feel snug with.”
Ms. Sturgeon’s arrest had deepened the issues which have engulfed the Scottish Nationwide Social gathering, which is campaigning for Scottish independence. Ms. Sturgeon’s husband, Peter Murrell, the celebration’s former chief government, and Colin Beattie, the celebration’s former treasurer, had been arrested in April. They, like Ms. Sturgeon, had been launched with out prices. On the time of her arrest, she wrote on social media that she was sure she had “dedicated no offense.”
She clearly welcomed the change of topic and the possibility to play social media influencer on Monday. Sitting on the wheel with the booklet of a neighborhood driver coaching firm in hand, she posed in a photo along with her “good” teacher, calling him “somebody I may belief and really feel snug with.”