Majority of voters ‘reject’ independence
LONDON: A wide majority of Scots reject independence, a new poll shows, days after Scottish nationalists caught British Prime Minister Theresa May off guard by revealing plans for a second independence referendum.
According to new figures published by The Times daily newspaper, 57% of Scottish voters reject independence.
The poll comes days after Scottish nationalists revealed they would next week seek authorisation for a second referendum on leaving the UK.
The announcement disrupted what was supposed to be a big win for the government after parliament finally granted it the right to trigger Article 50 of the EU’s Lisbon Treaty, which would start the twoyear divorce with the bloc.
The Scottish National Party (SNP) government in Edinburgh is hoping that with independence, Scotland could maintain its close ties with the EU.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said her concerns about Ms May’s plan to pull Britain out of Europe’s single market, in order to cut immigration, had been met with a “brick wall of intransigence”.
Ms May immediately condemned the plan, less than three years after Scots voted by 55% to reject independence, saying it
would be “divisive”. “This is not a moment to play politics or create uncertainty,” she repeated on Tuesday, saying it was time to “bring our country together”.
The European Commission was also quick to warn that an independent Scotland would have to reapply as a new nation. However Angus Robertson, the SNP’s most senior figure in Westminster, told The Guardian a referendum could be avoided if Scotland was allowed to stay in the EU single market.