First Minister confirms plans for second Scottish Referendum

The Scottish First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has today confirmed plans for a second Scottish Referendum, which she says could take place as early as autumn 2018.

Making the announcement this morning, the First Minister said the people of Scotland must be offered a choice between a hard Brexit and becoming an independent country, confirming plans to seek parliamentary approval to begin discussions with the UK Government on the details of a Section 30 order to enable an independence referendum to take place.

The First Minister also said that, despite Scotland voting to remain in Europe, the UK Government “has not moved even an inch in pursuit of compromise and agreement” since the Brexit vote.

She has proposed that a referendum take place between the autumn of 2018 and the spring of 2019, when the shape of the UK’s Brexit deal will become clear.

Responding, Orkney’s MSP Liam McArthur has said the announcement has come as no surprise and Scotland is now at risk of being left out of both the UK and the EU, which would be “the worst of all worlds.”

He said: “For months, the First Minister and her SNP colleagues have been preparing the ground for this announcement. They have made no secret of their determination to use the uncertainty of Brexit to create further uncertainty with another divisive referendum on independence. So much for ‘once in a generation’.

“In 2014, Orkney overwhelmingly rejected independence by 67 per cent to 33 per cent. I detect no widespread appetite locally for a campaign that inevitably will open up divisions in the community again. In last year’s election, I pledged not to support such a referendum. That remains my position.”

He added: “Nicola Sturgeon’s announcement today may play to the gallery ahead of SNP conference this weekend. Sadly, it will do nothing to address the growing problems we are seeing in education, health, transport and other areas for which her government has responsibility.”