MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Sturgeon puts independence referendum off until better days
Sturgeon admitted that “we face a Brexit that we didn’t vote for and in a form more extreme than any of us could have imagined one year ago.” Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon Tuesday admitted she needed to “reset” her referendum strategy and that she had abandoned her demands for a new independence referendum before the signing of the Brexit deal.
“I am therefore confirming today that, having listened and reflected, the Scottish government will reset the plan I set out on 13 March,” she told the Edinburgh Parliament. “We will not seek to introduce legislation for an independence referendum immediately.”
The announcement comes after her party lost a string of seats to pro-union parties in the general election. The Scottish National Party (SNP) lost 21 of its 56 Westminster seats at the election, where support for the party fell by 477,000 votes from the 2015 general election.
However, she left a door open, saying it was still “likely” a referendum would take place around 2021.
Sturgeon conceded there was not enough support in Scotland for a second vote on independence before the UK leaves the EU and that her priority now was to focus on getting the best Brexit deal possible.
”We will – in good faith – redouble our efforts and put our shoulder to the wheel in seeking to influence the Brexit talks in a way that protects Scotland’s interests,” Sturgeon said.
She added that “my responsibility as first minister is to build as much unity and consensus as possible,” and that “we face a Brexit that we didn’t vote for and in a form more extreme than any of us could have imagined one year ago.”
“At the end of this period of negotiation with the EU – likely to be around next autumn – when the terms of Brexit will be clearer, we will come back to parliament to set out our judgment on the best way forward at that time, including our view on the precise timescale for offering people a choice over the country’s future,” she said.
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Read all commentsSorry Nostrils Mays drubbing had nothing to do with Brexit. When she decided to put forward a policy to steal dementia patients homes this alienated the aged AND the young who were looking forward to inheriting them - double whammy!
Jun 28th, 2017 - 08:41 am +5Nicky has been kicked into the long grass by Ruth the Voice of reason! She is finished and she knows it.
The secret is in the name Scottish Nationalist Party. Yes, she will back off....for now....but drag it out when she feels she has a chance. Any politician would act like this...look at T.May !
Jun 28th, 2017 - 11:05 am +4Cutting through all the insults and ”I am right and you are wrong'. The Scottish people had no appetite for another 'once in a lifetime' referendum on independence and they knew a vote on the EU membership was on the cards when they voted - though not the date or outcome. Sturgeon was banging one drum and it was an unpopular one. She was pursuing her own agenda and not listening to the people.
Jun 28th, 2017 - 12:21 pm +3As for TM, remember she was a Remain supporter throughout the Brexit campaign. If Cameron had not been so foolish to have called the referendum (he could have found reasons to delay it) when he did we would not be in the mess we are now. And TM should have learned the lesson of foolish dependence on polls and not called an election this year.
Furthermore, far from being a hypocrite, as TTT suggests, she is doing exactly what she should be doing and that is acting in the interest of the majority. The majority - albeit very a very small one - voted for Brexit and her job is to get the best deal. It is not hypocrisy for politicians to put the will of the majority above their own personal opinions. (Something Sturgeon should have heeded). I have no doubt all the talk of a hard Brexit was for the benefit of the newspapers intent of criticising her every move given her personal views on Brexit. But again the people have spoken and clearly want a softer relationship with the EU.
As for the idea of May 'being drubbed all over the place', if that is true then Corbyn was 'knocked out with one punch'. To lose the majority vote and by 56 seats against one of the worst political campaigns ever and then pretend victory is simply laughable. He is a celebrity cult, not a politician. Did anyone see him at Glastonbury preaching to the crowd like they were the oppressed proletariat when the average spend for each festival-goer is close to £600? I heard the food concession holders were complaining that he fed the crowd with five loaves and two fishes. That's the Corbyn Cult for you.
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