NICOLA Sturgeon has chosen a drawing by Annie Lennox highlighting the impact of global warming to feature on her Christmas card this year.

The card, which shows an Arctic polar bear on top of a melting glacier, is an original work by the Scottish musician.

An auction of the original image will be held next year, with the proceeds going to three charities – the Glasgow and Clyde Rape Crisis Centre, the Marine Conservation Society and the Friends of Victoria and Whyteman’s Brae Hospitals.

The First Minister said: “I am thrilled to have such a beautiful and eye-catching picture for my Christmas card this year.

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“Annie Lennox has done a fantastic job at making the card feel festive while also reinforcing an extremely important message which is relevant all year round.

“Christmas is a time for giving and what better gift can we give future generations than a better world? That is why we have committed to end our contribution to climate change completely within a generation.”

Lennox said: “I’m absolutely delighted and honoured to have been invited to design the First Minister’s 2019 Christmas card. “While the drawing looks to all intents and purposes like a classic children’s storybook illustration, this is actually what’s taking place in the real world. Perilously so.”