NICOLA Sturgeon has welcomed a plan put forward by Caroline Lucas for 10 high-profile female politicians to establish a cabinet of national unity to block a No-Deal Brexit.

The First Minister spoke positively of the idea by the Green MP to form an all-woman “emergency cabinet” when she was interviewed on ITV’s Loose Women yesterday.

She said she had responded to an approach from Lucas to put together a group of female politicians to bring a “different perspective”.

Asked about her invitation to join the proposed female cross-party cabinet, she said: “I am happy to work with anybody, male or female, to stop Brexit.”

Earlier yesterday Lucas asked 10 female politicians from all parties to join her in forming an “emergency cabinet” in a bid to stop a No-Deal Brexit.

As well as the First Minister, Lucas approached Labour’s shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry, LibDem leader Jo Swinson and Conservative MP Justine Greening.

She also approached Heidi Allen and Anna Soubry, of Change UK, Kirsty Blackman, deputy leader of the SNP at Westminster, Labour MP Yvette Cooper, Sylvia Hermon, an independent Northern Ireland MP and Liz Saville Roberts, of Plaid Cymru, to force a no-confidence vote in Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

She would then hope to form a “national unity government” – the first arrangement of its kind since the Second World War.

However, speaking about female politicians, Sturgeon added: “Theresa May was a woman and she didn’t manage to sort out Brexit.”

But she said she believed there were good and bad politicians but that women could be more empathetic and bring a different approach to politics.

She joined the Loose Women panel – Andrea Mclean, Brenda Edwards, Carol McGiffin and Gloria Hunniford – to discuss topics including entering the world of politics, what she does to de-stress, “imposter syndrome” and her miscarriage in 2011.

The First Minister said she supported the idea of miscarriage leave proposed by New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, although Holyrood did not currently have powers to legislate for such a proposal, and she agreed society should adapt to speaking about it

to create a greater understanding.

She concluded her interview with a swipe at the new Prime Minister Boris Johnson, whom she met at her official residence in Bute House last month.

She joked: “Boris and I ... are not very alike. He is, you know, that kind of guy that talks nonsense but has that swagger, confidence and conviction.”

The move by Lucas is the first public offer to Labour, the LibDems and the SNP, as well as Tory rebels, detailing who would lead a potential government of national unity and how it could be constituted with the explicit aim of delivering a second EU referendum.

Labour has ruled out backing a replacement government not led by Jeremy Corbyn, limiting the chances that the plan could succeed.

Lucas, the former Green party leader who is her party’s only MP, wrote: “It is hard to remember a moment in my lifetime when Britain faced a greater crisis. A coup led by a small group of rightwing libertarians is all but complete, as the Vote Leave team has been reassembled and taken control of 10 Downing Street.

“They are set upon implementing the most extreme No-Deal version of Brexit – and, most terrifyingly, we are running out of time to stop them.”

Lucas said she believed a cabinet of women from across the political spectrum would be best placed to set up an “emergency cabinet” which she said would “work for reconciliation” rather than fight new political battles.