THE First Minister wants her government to take “a more direct role in global issues”.

According to an exclusive in today’s Herald, the Scottish Government has now been registered with US authorities as the “Government of Scotland in North America” with the intention of trying to influence affairs as a foreign power.

It is the first time the Scottish Government has been registered as such and it has also engaged a public relation agency in Washington DC to help it become “more vocal and present internationally”.

The political nature of the registration makes it a marked difference from the business quangos which have previously been registered on the other side of the Atlantic.

Sturgeon has been criticised by the Tories, who see the move as inappropriate after paperwork was filed with the US Department of Justice.

READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon on Brexit, her trip to America and an indy Scotland

It comes after the First Minister last month spent five days visiting various places in the US and Canada while promoting the country's business interests.