THERE’LL be no escaping the Brexit disaster for Scots, a Tory minister has warned.
Speaking anonymously to the BBC, the unnamed politician said Theresa May would knock back any request from Nicola Sturgeon to hold a second referendum on Scottish independence. “Once you’ve hit the iceberg, you’re all on it together,” the UK Government minister said.
The top Tory was one of a number of senior figures briefing the BBC against the prospect of another vote.
Whitehall are seemingly expecting Nicola Sturgeon to repeat her call for a Section 30 order sooner rather later.
It’s been two years since Holyrood backed a motion calling for another referendum on independence.
After that vote the First Minister wrote to May “to begin early discussions between our governments to agree an Order under Section 30 of the Scotland Act 1998 that would enable a referendum to be legislated for by the Scottish Parliament”.
But May had no wish to begin discussions, early or otherwise, telling the SNP leader that “now is not the time” for another vote.
The First Minister has promised to update the country on her thinking about another vote in the coming weeks.
There was some speculation she could do this at the SNP’s spring conference in Edinburgh at the the end of April.
Yesterday UK Government sources tried to pre-empt any call for a new order.
One source close to the Prime Minister told the BBC’s Nick Eardley: “The PM is in no mood to acquiesce to another referendum now – she would flat out say no.”
Another said: “There is no answer to this, other than now is not the time.”
A cabinet minister said: “I couldn’t imagine any circumstances in which she is going to say ‘yes’.”
And another member of the Government added: “The PM will knock it straight back.”
A senior SNP figure at Westminster: “We have a mandate – we have to find ways of that being reinforced.
“The party, the wider Yes (to independence) movement will have to demonstrate there is public support”.
“We will use whatever opportunities there are in front of us to reinforce the mandate we have”.
But there are others in the party who believe another election is necessary, fighting either the 2021 Holyrood vote, or a snap general election on an Yes to indyref2 platform.
One senior MP told the BBC there shouldn’t be another referendum until at least 2025 – adding: “We’re just not ready.”
Meanwhile, there are some Scottish Tories who are urging the Prime Minister to “keep hold of all the cards”, with London in charge of the date, question and franchise.
That could mean no under 18s getting a vote, or even no European citizens.
In 2014, more than four million people in Scotland were eligible, including British, Irish and all other European Union citizens resident in Scotland.
Of the more than 100,000 16 and 17-year-olds who votes, around 71% backed independence, according to a poll carried out by Tory donor Lord Ashcroft.
Responding on Twitter, Sturgeon said the call for London to be in charge of the franchise showed the Government are scared: “My goodness, the Tories really are terrified of the will of the Scottish people.
“This is not the look of a party confident in the strength of its own arguments.”
She added: “The justification here from a UK Minister for trying to block Scotland’s right to choose independence is quite something – ‘once you’ve hit the iceberg, you’re all on it together’.
“Well, actually, no, Scotland does not have to sink with the Brexit ship.”
An SNP spokesman spoke of the Tories “arrogance” and “incompetence”.
He added: “The Tories’ arrogance is exceeded only by their incompetence.
“The fact is that the future of Scotland will be decided by the Scottish people not by Theresa May who, let’s be frank, is fast becoming a parody of herself. The last couple of years are littered with examples of the PM taking ‘cast iron’ positions that later crumbled to dust.
“Just a matter of days ago she was adamant she wouldn’t countenance a delay to Brexit – until suddenly she did,” he added.
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