Scottish parliament backs new independence referendum
March 29, 2017
Motion passed 69 votes to 59 and comes a day before the United Kingdom takes the formal step towards Brexit.
Sturgeon told Scottish legislators she would negotiate with the British government [Russell Cheyne/AFP]
Scotland’s parliament has voted in favour of a call by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon for a second referendum on Scottish independence within two years, but the British government has refused to discuss it.
The motion passed 69 votes to 59 on Tuesday and paves the way for the opening of formal talks between Scotland and the British government on the new referendum, coming just three years after Scottish voters rejected independence.
Al Jazeera’s Neave Barker, reporting from London, said it was “a significant step forward for supporters of Scottish independence in bringing about something that was essentially scuppered back in 2014”.
“For Brexit supporters it means a massive headache,” he said.
On Wednesday, British Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to trigger Article 50 of the European Union’s Lisbon Treaty, the first formal step towards Brexit that Scotland opposes.
