Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has said she wants to have a "legal, constitutional referendum" on Scottish independence as she announced a new Bill is to be published at Holyrood for a consultative vote on the matter. She told MSPs the Bill will set out for a referendum to be held on October 19, 2023, with the question to be asked the same as in the 2014 vote: “Should Scotland be an independent country?”
Ms Sturgeon said she would be writing to Prime Minister Boris Johnson to inform him of her plans. She added she would make clear she is “ready and willing” to negotiate the terms of a Section 30 order with him, which would give Holyrood the power to hold a referendum.
But with the Prime Minister having repeatedly refused her calls for another referendum to be held, Ms Sturgeon added: “What I am not willing to do, what I will never do is allow Scottish democracy to be a prisoner of Boris Johnson or any prime minister.”
