(MENAFN) The United Kingdom Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that Scotland's semi-autonomous government cannot hold an independence referendum without the approval of the government in London.
The five judges of the body unanimously decided that the Edinburgh parliament "does not have the power to legislate for a referendum on Scottish independence," according to the body's president, Lord Reed.
The head of the pro-independence Scottish National Party, Nicola Sturgeon, expressed disappointment with the decision but stressed that it just "blocks one route" for Edinburgh to consider breaking away from London.
She wrote on Twitter that “a law that doesn’t allow Scotland to choose our own future without Westminster consent exposes as myth any notion of the UK as a voluntary partnership” and strengthens the case for independence.
In a speech later in the day, Sturgeon declared that the SNP would hold a special conference in the coming months to decide how the upcoming Scottish general election could effectively be converted into a referendum on independence.
MENAFN24112022000045014146ID1105228704
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.