(LONDON) Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Sunday she would press ahead with her campaign to get Scotland out of the UK, despite losing her Supreme Court case for clearance for a new referendum on independence.
Posted yesterday at 3:27 pm.
The head of the Scottish government wants to hold a referendum in October 2023, but the UK’s Conservative government in London opposes it. The UK’s highest court will hear arguments from Tuesday on whether Scotland’s semi-autonomous administration can hold an independence vote without the consent of the UK government.
Mme Sturgeon, who leads the Scottish National Party, has said that if her government loses in court, she will make the next UK national election a de facto referendum on whether to end the more than 300-year union between Scotland and England.
She did not give details of how the whole thing would work, but a vote without the approval of the British government would still be invalid in the eyes of the law.
Mme Sturgeon said if the courts blocked the referendum, she would “put her case before the people at a general election, otherwise Scottish democracy will be abandoned”. »
“It should be done as a last resort,” she said. I don’t want to find myself in this position. I want to hold a legal referendum,” she said.
Scotland and England have been politically united since 1707. The Scots have had their own parliament and government since 1999 and have developed their own policies, including public health and education. The UK government in London controls national defense and economic policy issues.
Scottish voters rejected independence by 55% in a 2014 referendum, a decision touted as a once-in-a-generation choice. Nicola Sturgeon’s government has argued that the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union and the Covid-19 pandemic have upended politics and the economy and that it is time to revisit the cause of independence.
British voters narrowly approved Brexit in a 2016 referendum, while Scots voted overwhelmingly to remain in the European Union.
M’s party.me Sturgeon leads a pro-independence majority in the Scottish Parliament, along with the Scottish Green Party, and she said support for another independence vote created a “clear democratic mandate”.
The Prime Minister has promised to present documents outlining the economic basis for independence in the coming weeks. These supporting documents also answer specific questions, such as the currency used after this split.
She maintained that her goal of holding a referendum within a year was realistic. “There is no point in speculating on the outcome of the hearing, but if the decision proves positive, our plans are ready,” she said.
Polls suggest Scotland is evenly divided on the issue of independence. Labour’s Alistair Darling, the former UK Treasury chief, said polls also show a majority of Scots do not want a referendum anytime soon.
“Our country is falling apart, and this uncertainty is undermining our growth prospects and our prosperity,” Darling said.
