Nicola Sturgeon has said she wants to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence by 2021 if the country is taken out of the EU.

The first minister told Holyrood that she would introduce legislation soon to set the rules for another vote.

But she indicated that she would need the agreement of the UK government before actually holding a referendum.

Downing Street has previously said it will not grant a new Section 30 order, which underpinned the 2014 referendum.

Ms Sturgeon said this position was "unsustainable" and challenged her party to increase support and demand for independence.

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Nicola Sturgeon knows that the Westminster government will almost certainly refuse to allow another referendum within the next two years - so she needs to find a way to keep the constitutional argument alive while there is little prospect of an imminent vote.

The SNP know that by proposing another referendum they will be accused by those who do not support independence of introducing a divisive political issue at the worst possible time.

So the first minister is challenging other parties who do not support Scottish independence to come forward with their own ideas for constitutional change, promising that the SNP will engage fully and in good faith.

Ms Sturgeon is very deliberately talking of trying to find compromise and consensus amongst politicians - saying Scotland can do things differently from Westminster.

It is an appeal that is clearly meant to reach beyond other party leaders and straight to voters who may not welcome independence, but might well appreciate the approach the first minister is proposing.

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Recently retired doctors are being recruited by Scotland's NHS to fill gaps in rural areas.

A new drive has been launched to encourage doctors to return to work to help with low staffing levels

The initiative involves clinicians who have recently retired or who are working part time taking on short-term work at rural general hospitals.

But Conservatives accused the Government of "bungling" the training of new recruits.

Read more here.

Lib Dem MSP Alex Cole-Hamilton highlights vacancies for GPs across Scotland.

He commends the new GP contract, but does highlight potential issues around elements relating to premises.

GPs are the first port of call for many of our constituents but they are all too often the last thought in this place, he concludes.

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Labour MSP Monica Lennon says GPs tell her they are under unprecedented pressure, facing stress and burnout.

"The evidence that GP recruitment is in crisis is clear and is mounting."

She argues there has been a failure by the Scottish government to address workforce planning issues adequately.

It's GPs that are paying the price, Ms Lennon explains.

The Labour MSP welcomes some of the action outlined by the cabinet secretary, but argues we need to see promises being delivered on, which has not always been the case with her party.

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Tory MSP Miles Briggs says rural GPs feel the new GP contract does not work for them.

General practice continues to face considerable under-investment, he says, insisting the workforce can only be boosted if the resource is put in place.

Mr Briggs says despite the efforts made by the government to recruit more GPs, only 18 have been brought on in the last two years.

Ministers need to take urgent action on general practice and funding to prevent this crisis going further, he argues.

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Health Secretary Jeanne Freeman says 90% of Scotland's health service starts and stops in primary care.

Ms Freeman insists the government is working hard to deliver its priorities for primary care but accepts there are challenges.

The health secretary says the new GP contract has been in place for one year and is a landmark contract, backed by 71% of the BMA.

She argues the new contract works to reduce risks around staffing and improve the GP workload.

The health secretary accept the government must retain, recruit and retrain GPs.

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Last summer we reported A shortage of GPs in Greater Glasgow affected out-of-hours health care in the city overnight.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said it did not have enough doctors on duty to staff its out of hours centres between 01:00 and 06:00 on Sunday.

Only the Lomond primary care emergency centre at Vale of Leven hospital in West Dunbartonshire was open.

It meant patients requiring urgent medical care were asked to go to accident and emergency.

Read more here.

Scottish Greens health spokesperson Alison Johnstone highlights pressures facing GPs at the moment which makes recruitment and retention all the harder.

While she applauds the Scottish government's efforts to recruit more, Ms Johnstone insists the issue of retention and looking after current staff must be addressed.

There has been a continued decrease in the proportion of GPs working eight or more sessions each week which indicates a change in culture, she adds.

Until resources are put in to reflect this change, patients face longer waiting times the Green MSP warns.

Ms Johnstone highlights preventative action can shift the balance of care towards community services and calls for appropriate resources to back health and social care integration.

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Nicola Sturgeon has said she wants to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence by 2021 if the country is taken out of the EU.

The first minister told Holyrood that she would introduce legislation soon to set the rules for another vote.

But she will not yet ask the UK government for a Section 30 order, which underpinned the last independence referendum in 2014.

She also challenged her party to grow support and demand for independence.

The statement and questions have now concluded.

Read more here.

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Green MSP Alison Johnstone will now lead a debate on resources for GP retention and recruitment, warning not enough support is being made available to allow GPs to deliver the quality of care expected.

The Greens want more cash for GPs as their numbers drop.

She will say resources are not being made available to cope with the envisaged shift to services in the community.

According to the 2017 Primary Care Workforce Survey the number of whole time equivalent GPs has fallen by 160 (4%) since 2013

The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) predicted a shortfall of 856 GPs by 2021

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Portfolio questions: justice ministers and the law officers and government business and constitutional relations ministers were in the hot seats today.

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