Edinburgh (AP) – Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon is confident that London will not prevent an independence referendum in Scotland following his party’s electoral victory.
“If the people of Scotland vote for a party that says ‘when the time comes, there should be an independence referendum’, you can’t stand in the way,” Sturgeon told the Guardian. “And I don’t think that’s going to happen.”
In its report, the newspaper cited unnamed government sources that it is said to have already accepted that calling for a referendum after a clear election result would be almost inevitable.
The Scots will elect a new regional parliament on 6 May. Sturgeon is a clear favorite with his Scottish National Party (SNP). In the event of an absolute majority, the party wants to move through a new independence referendum – Prime Minister Boris Johnson should allow it. The clearer the Scottish election result, the greater the pressure on London.
A vote in 2014 was against the separation of Scotland from the United Kingdom. However, this was before the 2016 Brexit referendum. Since a clear majority of Scots voted against Brexit, the independence movement subsequently gained significant support. The Scottish National Party is currently leading the election.
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