Nicola Sturgeon hints at Section 30 plan B.

Sturgeon warns May she has alternative plans

Nicola Sturgeon has warned Theresa May she has a back-up plan should the Prime Minister continue to block Holyrood’s demand for an independence referendum.

In a letter to Theresa May formally requesting referendum talks, she said there is “no rational reason” for the Conservative leader to “stand in the way” of the Scottish Parliament’s will.

But the call for a 2018/19 referendum has already been given short shrift by the UK Government, which knocked back the request shortly after receiving it.

The letter demanded that Westminster makes a section 30 order, which would temporarily transfer the authority to hold a referendum to Holyrood.

It followed a Scottish Parliament vote last week in which MSPs backed the SNP administration’s bid to pursue another ballot. The statement, which was delivered yesterday morning, calls for Scotland to have a choice, via an independence referendum, to opt out of a Brexit that 62% of Scots voted against.

Downing Street confirmed it has received the letter and said it will respond in due course. A UK Government spokeswoman confirmed the request would be denied.

She said: “The Prime Minister has been clear that now is not the time for a second independence referendum, and we will not be entering into negotiations on the Scottish Government’s proposal.

“At this point, all our focus should be on our negotiations with the European Union, making sure we get the right deal for the whole of the UK. It would be unfair to the people of Scotland to ask them to make a crucial decision without the necessary information about our future relationship with Europe, or what an independent Scotland would look like.”

Ms Sturgeon’s 939-word letter warned Mrs May of the repercussions of formally rejecting the section 30 order request from Holyrood.

“There appears to be no rational reason for you to stand in the way of the will of the Scottish Parliament and I hope you will not do so,” Ms Sturgeon told the PM. “However, in anticipation of your refusal to enter into discussions at this stage, it is important for me to be clear about my position.

“It is my firm view that the mandate of the Scottish Parliament must be respected and progressed.

“The question is not if, but how. I hope that will be by constructive discussion between our governments.

“However, if that is not yet possible, I will set out to the Scottish Parliament the steps I intend to take to ensure that progress is made towards a referendum.”

The PM has repeatedly said that “now is not the time” for a referendum and has ruled out any Scottish secession talks during the Brexit negotiations – or while the UK’s new constitutional arrangements are bedding in.

Ms Sturgeon, pictured above, wants a referendum to be held between autumn 2018, which should mark the end of the negotiations, and spring 2019, when Brexit takes effect.

She said by the timetables laid down by Downing Street and the EU, the public will know what Brexit will look like by autumn 2018. But Conservative ministers say a plebiscite in that window will force Scots to “vote blind”, while also undermining the Brussels talks.

Scottish Conservative deputy leader Jackson Carlaw said Ms Sturgeon’s plans are “unwanted and unworkable”.

“Unwanted, because people made a decision on this just three years ago and don’t want to go back to yet more division. Unworkable, because under the SNP’s plans, people would have no idea what they are voting on.”

Kezia Dugdale, the Scottish Labour leader, said: “People across Scotland will be dismayed that Nicola Sturgeon is more focused on rerunning the arguments of the past than doing her job of running our public services.

“Scotland doesn’t need or want a second independence referendum. There is absolutely no evidence that another divisive referendum is the will of the people of Scotland.”