Nationalists vow independence vote after winning majority in Scottish Parliament

Pro-independence parties won a majority in Scotland’s Parliament on May 8, paving the way for a high-stakes political, legal and constitutional battle with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson over the future of the United Kingdom. Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the result meant she would push ahead with plans for a second independence referendum once the COVID-19 pandemic was over. “There is simply no democratic justification whatsoever for Boris Johnson, or indeed for anyone else, seeking to block the right of the people of Scotland to choose our own future,” Sturgeon said. “It is the will of the country,” she added after her Scottish National Party (SNP) was returned for a fourth consecutive term in office. The British government argues Johnson must give approval for any referendum and he has repeatedly made clear he would refuse. He has said it would be irresponsible to hold one now, pointing out that Scots had backed staying in the U.K. in a “once in a generation” poll in 2014. (Reuters) This article was provided by The Japan Times Alpha.