Scottish Parliament Backs Bid for New Independence Referendum

The proposal was immediately rejected by the British government.

Scottish Independence supporters hold flags and banners outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh on Tuesday. (Photo Courtesy: AP)

The Scottish parliament on Tuesday backed a bid to hold a new independence referendum in 2018 or 2019, but the British government immediately rejected the proposal.

The stand-off further complicates the United Kingdom's political situation just as years of daunting negotiations on the terms of its exit from the European Union are about to begin.

The Brexit issue has strained ties between the UK’s four constituent parts because England and Wales voted to leave the EU while Scotland and Northern Ireland voted to remain.

British Prime Minister Theresa May is due to trigger Article 50 of the bloc’s Lisbon Treaty on Wednesday, a formal step that will start two years of talks on withdrawal terms and future trade relations.

The Scottish legislature in Edinburgh voted by a majority of 69 to 59 to give First Minister Nicola Sturgeon a mandate to formally seek permission from the British parliament in London to prepare for a referendum in late 2018 or early 2019.

The people of Scotland should have the right to choose between Brexit, possibly a very hard Brexit, or becoming an independent country able to chart our own course

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon

But the British government swiftly responded that it would refuse to enter into negotiations on Sturgeon's proposal.

“It would be unfair to the people of Scotland to ask them to make a crucial decision without the necessary information about our future relationship with Europe, or what an independent Scotland would look like,” it said in a statement.

(The article has been edited for length.)

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