NICOLA Sturgeon has set her sights on reaching 100,000 members for the SNP by next year's General Election after appearing in front of a sell-out crowd at a rally in Glasgow.
The new First Minister received a rapturous welcome from a 12,000-strong crowd at the city's Hydro, telling them that SNP membership has risen from 25,000 at the time of the referendum to more than 92,000. Supporters cheered and waved flags and foam fingers as she told them: "Scotland will become an independent country." She said the event, part of a nationwide tour, was "an amazing end to a momentous week" in which she had become Scotland's first female leader.
During her speech, the politician called for a "progressive alliance" with parties such as Plaid Cymru in Wales and the Green party in England to change the Westminster system. "Not only does the old Westminster system not work for Scotland but it does not work for many other parts of the UK," she said.
She added: "Democracy rocks."
The rally featured music from Eddi Reader and bagpipe band the Red Hot Chilli Pipers, while Dougie MacLean rounded off the event singing his anthem, Caledonia.
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