Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon has insisted there is an “indisputable mandate” for a second independence referendum.
Speaking in Edinburgh, she said she planned to give a “significant update to parliament very soon indeed” in relation to a new poll – after Scottish voters rejected independence in 2014.
Ms Sturgeon argued that under Westminster control, Scotland was “being held back” and that there was a “strong anbd compelling” case for leaving the UK.
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The first minister said she had been elected “on a clear commitment to give the people of Scotland the choice of becoming an independent country”.
She added: “In their day-to-day lives, people across Scotland are suffering the impacts of the soaring cost of living, low growth and increasing inequality, constrained public finances and the many implications of a Brexit we did not vote for.
“These problems have all been made worse or, most obviously in the case of Brexit, directly caused by the fact we are not independent.
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“So at this critical juncture we face a fundamental question.
“Do we stay tied to a UK economic model that consigns us to relatively poor economic and social outcomes which are likely to get worse, not better, outside the EU?
“Or do we lift our eyes, with hope and optimism, and take inspiration from comparable countries across Europe?”
Ms Sturgeon claimed if the UK government “had any respect at all for democracy” it would grant a section 30 order, allowing a legally binding referendum to be held, as happened in 2014.
She said she had made clear to Boris Johnson that she is “ready to discuss the terms of such an order at any time”.
But she said that his previous refusals to grant such an order meant she must consider if a referendum could be held by other means.
A Downing Street spokesman said: “The UK government’s position is that now is not the time to be talking about another referendum.
“We’re confident that the people of Scotland want and expect their governments to be working together to focus on issues like the global cost of living challenge, like war in Europe, and the issues that matter to their families.”
