DOWNING Street has responded to announcements from Scottish Government ministers that it has restarted work preparing for a second independence referendum.
On Monday, Deputy First Minister John Swinney said that now Scotland is in a "much improved situation” in terms of the coronavirus pandemic, work has once again begun on securing a vote on Scotland's future.
Also the Covid Recovery Secretary, Swinney told the BBC's Good Morning Scotland: "We took the sensible decision back in March 2020 to pause all preparations for an independence referendum despite having a mandate to do so.
READ MORE: Indyref2 work under way now Covid situation 'much improved', says deputy FM
"We now find ourselves in a position where we are in a much improved situation. We have very modest measure left in place to protect against Covid.”
Monday, January 24 saw the easing of most of Scotland's Covid restrictions apart from baseline measures such as wearing of face coverings in indoor public spaces and on public transport.
It follows Nicola Sturgeon saying over the weekend that the Government would decide "within weeks" when it would introduce legislation to pave the way for indyref2.
Downing Street has responded to the assertions by the SNP Scottish Government that is making plans on a manifesto commitment.
Boris Johnson's official spokesperson has said that the focus of both governments should be "on the most pressing challenges facing the United Kingdom".
READ MORE: Tory MSP furious as SNP dare to bring up UK's cost of living crisis
The Prime Minister's official spokesperson said: “People in Scotland rightly expect focus of both their governments and energy to be squarely on recovering from the effects of the pandemic and working together to achieve that.”
The official added: “There are going to be long-standing challenges caused by this global pandemic. I think certainly it’s what is at the forefront of the public’s mind.
“They want the full focus to be on the most pressing challenges facing the United Kingdom, these issues that make a real difference to them and their families, whether these are issues facing the health service on catching up with hours lost in education.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel