Scottish parlament wants new referendum

The parliament in Edinburgh has approved First Minister Nicola Sturgeon's plan for a new referendum on Scottish independence. According to the plan London should allow the people of Scotland to hold a new referendum before Brexit, meaning at the latest in March 2019. The press shows understanding for the Scots' rekindled desire for independence.

Open/close all quotes
The Economist (GB) /

Desire for independence is understandable

Scotland has every reason to demand more independence, The Economist argues:

“The Leave campaign clearly resonated with voters when it talked about the need for Britain to take back control of its laws from a remote Brussels bureaucracy. But the argument applies just as well in Scotland where the Conservatives last won most seats in 1955; in the 2010 and 2015 elections, the Tories got one seat but the Scots still ended up with a Conservative prime minister. ... Do the Scots have influence anyway? Well, they have asked for a deal in which Scotland stays part of the single market; Mrs May is refusing to ask for such a deal.”

Tages-Anzeiger (CH) /

May driving Scots towards independence

The British prime minister will be to blame if Scotland ends up voting for independence, the Tages-Anzeiger believes:

“Compromise proposals from Edinburgh were ignored, no one felt it was necessary to include the Scots in London's Brexit planning. Theresa May lost sight of how complex the UK is. Now in the midst of the Brexit turmoil she is forced to deal with another hotspot. She'd prefer to ignore Scotland's demands, delaying the issue and letting it fizzle out. ... But the situation has a dynamic of its own. The more May opposes the will of the Scottish parliament, the more she pushes outraged Scottish voters into the separatists' arms. And the more bitter her fight with Brussels becomes, the more tempting the idea of taking an alternative path must seem to many. Or at least, in Scotland, the possibility of having a choice.”