Members of Scottish Parliament vote in support for another indyref

Despite the Prime Minister’s threat to block another Scottish independence referendum, the Scottish Parliament yesterday gave their unflinching support to Nicola Sturgeon the First Minister as she calls for a second referendum.

The MSPs voted 69 to 59 in support of Sturgeon’s plan to request for authorisation from the entire government of the United Kingdom for she to call for another referendum between autumn next year and spring 2019.

Commenting after the vote, Ms Sturgeon said the referendum would be "first and foremost, about giving the people of Scotland a choice on this country's future".

Meanwhile, a UK Government spokeswoman echoed this, saying they would "not be entering into negotiations on the Scottish Government's proposal".

She added: "At this point, all our focus should be on our negotiations with the European Union, making sure we get the right deal for the whole of the UK.

"It would be unfair to the people of Scotland to ask them to make a crucial decision without the necessary information about our future relationship with Europe, or what an independent Scotland would look like."

However Ms Sturgeon said the MSPs' vote "must now be respected".

She added: "The mandate for a referendum is beyond question and it would be democratically indefensible - and utterly unsustainable - to attempt to stand in the way of it."

According to a correspondent from Sky News, there were cheers from inside Holyrood and from a small crowd of independence supporters positioned outside the building as the result of the vote was announced.

He added: "The problem for Nicola Sturgeon is that (independence supporters) don't number more than 50% of the Scottish population, according to the opinion polls.

"There is still a firm majority in favour of sustaining or retaining the union and that is her challenge now - to turn over that deficit in public support."

Thus, Ms Sturgeon will now write a letter to Mrs May "later this week" with her Section 30 request, a delay that Matthews said was likely due to "politics and PR".

"I think in terms of PR in political campaigning, that letter would have been lost in the coverage and fuss surrounding the triggering of Article 50," he said.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said the decision to go ahead with another vote was "deeply regrettable", while Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale said there was no evidence that Scots want another referendum.

She said: "We have no idea what Brexit looks like, or how it will impact our economy and families in Scotland."

Ross Greer, the Scottish Greens' external affairs spokesman, said: "It should be our responsibility, as those elected by the people of Scotland, to fight for their right to choose their own future."