British ministers allegedly accepts secretely that they cannot stop Scotland from holding another independence referendum

After several months of attacks and counter attack from within and outside her party, the Scottish National Party (SNP), it is becoming likely that the First Minister Nicola Sturgeon may be getting closer to getting a nod for another Scottish independence referendum next year.

According to a report reaching news desk, a an indyref 2 is likely after Government ministers privately agreed that they might not be able to ignore the First Minister’s quest for another referendum.

Another source also made it known how UK ministers went behind closed doors to accept how difficult it would be for them to reject the demand made by the SNP, saying the worst they can do is to shift the date to 2019, immediately after Brexit negotiations are over.

Analysts have also predicted that unionist who fought to keep Scotland in the UK in the last referendum may need to fighter much harder to convince the Scottish people to stay in the UK.

Saying that the government would be in serious need of heavyweights to scale through, rather than engaging the former PM Gordon Brown and former Chancellor Alistair Darling.

The Conservatives have been the main opposition to Labour since 2014 but leading academics warn if the No campaign is seen as Tory v the Scottish Nationalists it will likely end in victory for Sturgeon.

James Mitchell, a professor at the University of Edinburgh, said: “If it’s Nicola Sturgeon against Ruth Davidson, it’s game over.”

Iain Anderson, executive chairman of financial advisory group Cicero, said: “The playbook will be different.

“There is no way that the UK government will want to run Project Fear again.

“They need to start work much earlier and activate local supporters.”

But then again a Project Fear campaign would be stronger now than in 2014, as Scotland’s oil and gas proceeds have plunged abruptly.

Before votes were cast in the first poll the Scottish government had predicted tax receipts of between £3.2 billion and £8 billion in 2018 and 2019.

But the Office for Budget Responsibility this week has put expected receipts at £700 million.

Kezia Dugdale, the Scottish Labour leader, stated that: “We would be faced with a £15bn deficit if we were independent, and that means less money for our schools, hospitals, our welfare service.”

Alistair Carmichael, the sole Scottish Liberal Democrat MP, said the No campaign must “be more positive … We’ve got to call out nationalism for what it is.

“The idea you can be a ‘nationalist internationalist’ is for the birds.”