Scottish Nationalists Vow Independence Vote After Election Win

Pro-independence parties In Scotland have won a majority in parliament paving the way to a high-stakes political, legal and constitutional battle with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson over the future of the United Kingdom.

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the result meant she would push ahead with plans for a second independence referendum once the COVID-19 pandemic was over.

Sturgeon said it would be absurd and outrageous if Johnson were to try to ignore the democratic will of the people or try to block the right of the people of Scotland to choose their own future.

She added that it is the will of the country,” she added after her Scottish National Party (SNP) was returned for a fourth consecutive term in office

The British government argues Johnson must give approval for any referendum and he has repeatedly made clear he would refuse.

He has said it would be irresponsible to hold one now, pointing out that Scots had backed staying in the United Kingdom in a “once in a generation” poll in 2014.

The election outcome is likely to be a bitter clash between the Scottish government in Edinburgh and Johnson’s United Kingdom-wide administration in London.

The nationalists argue that they have democratic authority on their side; the British government say the law is with them and It is likely the final decision on a referendum will be settled in the courts.