Tension in the UK: Boris Johnson’s rejection of Scotland’s goal of holding a new referendum for independence

Boris Johnson on Monday rejected new demands from the Scottish government to hold a new referendum on independence from 2023, after the Chief Minister of Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon, do you remember the “indisputable mandate“Available to perform said consultation.

“Democracy must prevail, and will prevail,” Sturgeon said at a Scottish National Party (SNP) conference on Monday via videoconference in which he appealed to the “spirit of cooperation” of Downing Street, as “The Scots have the right to make this decision.”

“The experience of the pandemic and the ensuing challenges that we now face reinforce my view that this is the right path. So in this spirit of cooperation, I hope the Scottish and UK governments can come to an agreement, as we did in 2014, ”said the Scottish Minister.

“Until recently, no one seriously questioned the Scots’ right to choose whether or not they wanted to become independent. Frankly, it is not for a government in Westminster, which has only six MPs in Scotland, to decide our future without the consent of the people who live here. “added.

Among the reasons Sturgeon put forward for going ahead with the independence consultation is London’s decision to go ahead with Brexit, one of the “conservative obsessionsWhat is causing great “damage” to Scotland.

“Westminster will use any damage it has inflicted as an argument for better control. As we get poorer they will say we can’t afford to be independent. By cutting our trade with the EU, they will say that we are too dependent on the rest of the UK, ”he argued.

“By downsizing, they will say the country is aging too fast. They want us to believe that we are powerless disastrous decisions what they have done for us and the damage these decisions are causing. They want us to look inward, not outward, ”added the Scottish Minister.

However, the British government was quick to rule out such a possibility and denied any movement in this regard while Sturgeon hadn’t even finished his closing speech at the SNP conference yet.

“This is not the moment”the Prime Minister’s spokesperson said during a meeting with the press in Downing Street, in which it was stressed that the fight against the pandemic and its economic consequences are the current priorities of the government of London.

“The Scots have made it clear that they want the UK government and decentralized governments to work together to defeat the pandemic, this is our priority”Johnson spokesmen said, according to the newspaper Scottish.

Last May, SNP was produced by trimester consecutive time with triumph in the Scottish legislatures, although on the verge of securing an absolute majority which could be facilitated by the Greens, the other nationalist force in Parliament.

Last week, a poll published by Sky News predicts a narrow victory in favor of the independence movement, which would obtain 51% of the vote, while another unveiled by the newspaper Scottish it placed opponents of secession at about 52 percent.

For his part, a few days ago, the Scottish Minister for the Constitution, Angus robertson, he said in an interview with the agency EFE that the Sturgeon government has “The company’s mandate to hold a referendum” independence in this legislature after which he lost in 2014.

“The SNP has been re-elected to face the pandemic crisis and organize a referendum with which society can decide the future of its country“said Robertson, who has announced that they will promote the plebiscite” as soon as the pandemic is over. “

“We have a mandate from the company to hold a referendum. The one that looks like the one held in 2014 (agreed with UK)“, declared the minister, who considered that the circumstances are ripe for renewing the consultation from London”broke off their engagement“That if the Scots rejected independence, the country” would remain in the European Union (EU).

(With information from Europa Press and EFE)

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