Scottish independence referendum to face Holyrood vote next week - Sturgeon

Scotland should hold another independence referendum between autumn 2018 and spring 2019, first minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Monday, and she will begin the process to hold the poll next week.

With Theresa May expected to kick off the two-year process to exit the European Union later in the coming days, Sturgeon said the Scottish people needed to be given the choice before the end of the process.

She said she will ask the Scottish parliament to vote in favour of holding another referendum next week, with the details of the referendum, including the timing, an issue for Scotland to decide rather than Westminster.

She says the independence vote should take place between the autumn of 2018 and the spring of 2019.

"Doing nothing at this stage - in many ways is the easiest thing - would mean letting Scotland drift through the next two year simply hoping for the best," Sturgeon said.

She said it was "important that Scotland is able to exercise the right to choose our own future at a time when the options are clearer than they are now, but before it is too late to decide on our own path".

"The Scottish government's mandate for offering this choice is beyond doubt."

Sturgeon's made her move ahead of an expected completion of the EU Withdrawal Bill later on Monday, which will give the Prime Minister the power to trigger Article 50 as early as Tuesday, if she so chooses.

If the two-year exit process is triggered via Article 50 later this month, Brexit talks should end in autumn 2018 in time for ratification or approval by the European Council, European Parliament and Westminster ahead of March 2019.

In order for Scotland, which voted 62% in favour of the UK remaining within the EU to the wider UK's 48%, to hold a second referendum it would have be granted permission by Westminster and May has indicated she would not be inclined to do so until Britain has left the EU by 2019.

But Sturgeon said she would table a section 30 order in Holyrood, which is a provision in the existing devolution legislation that allows for powers normally reserved to Westminster to be given to Scotland's parliament.

Political opposition

The announcement drew quick condemnation from Ruth Davidson, the Scottish Conservative leader, who said Sturgeon was choosing "the path of further division and uncertainty".

"With our country facing all of the uncertainty around the Tories' reckless plans for a hard Brexit, the last thing we need is even more uncertainty and division."

Labour's Kezia Dugdale was of a similar view, saying Scotland was "already divided enough [...] we do not want to be divided again, but that is exactly what another independence referendum would do."

Reaction

Sterling, which had started higher Monday on hopes that parliament could have a vote on its on exit deal, saw some volatility immediately after the announcement but has since settled slightly higher, up 0.37% on the day to 1.2218.

Gilts saw a minimal impact, though yields were pushed to session highs. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Gilt jump from its intra-day lows near 1.19% to 1.25%.

Analysts said Sturgeon had thrown another, albeit expected, spanner in the works.

"The announcement hasn’t come as a major surprise, with the SNP making their feelings repeatedly known since the EU referendum last June after the majority of the country voted to remain only to be dragged out kicking and screaming," said Craig Erlam at Oanda.

"What is confusing is the timing for the new referendum, with Sturgeon claiming that it should happen between Autumn 2018 and Spring 2019, prior to the two years of Brexit negotiations being completed.

"This effectively means that even if the negotiations go perfectly to plan, which they likely won’t, the Scottish people won’t know what they will actually be voting for. It’s almost like Sturgeon wants the alternative to independence to be enormous uncertainty when the alternative could be cleared up months after the proposed date."