Theresa May has dramatically faced down Nicola Sturgeon over a new Scottish independence referendum, declaring that “now is not the time” and effectively pushing any second vote beyond the completion of Brexit in 2019.
The UK prime minister risks inflaming Scottish nationalist sentiment by refusing to grant Ms Sturgeon’s demands, made earlier this week, for a second poll in late 2018 or the spring of 2019, but has decided to tough it out. In an interview with ITV News, Mrs May said: “We should be putting all of our energy into getting the right deal for the UK and Scotland in these negotiations with the EU. We should be working together, not pulling apart.”
Mrs May refused to say what she meant with her repeated assertion that “now is not the time”, but her allies have made it clear she will not permit a second independence vote until Brexit is complete. Ms Sturgeon responded on Twitter, saying that Downing Street’s refusal to agree to another referendum would be “undemocratic” and “proof positive that the Tories fear the verdict of the Scottish people”. The prime minister’s surprise intervention was intended to pre-empt Ms Sturgeon’s SNP party conference in Aberdeen, starting on Friday, and to assert her control over the process. Westminster has to sanction a second Scottish vote on separation.
Mrs May said that Scots would not have “crucial information” about the UK’s future relationship with the EU while Brexit talks were continuing, but did not rule out permitting a Scottish vote while she was prime minister. The prime minister’s team concede that it is politically dangerous to resist the Scottish first minister’s call for a second referendum over many years, but believe they can hold the line for now. The last Scottish referendum was in 2014 and Mrs May argues that there is scant evidence that Scots want a second vote now.
Meanwhile the leader of the Scottish Conservatives has declared that Scotland cannot hold an independence referendum at least until the UK’s post-Brexit relationship “is working”. Speaking in the Scottish parliament, Ruth Davidson signalled a tough line on Ms Sturgeon’s call for a fresh referendum on leaving the UK to be held the by spring 2019 at the latest. “The Scottish Conservatives reject the proposals set out by the first minister on Monday,” Ms Davidson said. “A referendum cannot happen when the people of Scotland have not been given the opportunity to see how our new relationship with the European Union is working and it should not take place when there is no clear political or public consent for it to happen,” she said.
Ms Sturgeon responded by pointing out that the SNP won the 2016 Scottish parliament election with a much greater share of the vote than the Conservatives managed across the UK in 2015. The SNP 2016 manifesto included a demand for the right to hold a second referendum if Scotland was to be forced out of the EU against its will, the first minister said, adding that there was a majority for independence in the Scottish parliament. “Let me issue this direct challenge to Ruth Davidson and to the Conservative party,” Ms Sturgeon said. “If on Wednesday next week this parliament votes for an independence referendum to give the people of Scotland a choice over their own future, will the Conservatives respect the will of this parliament?” she said.