3 Sep 2019
Nicola Sturgeon has used her programme for government to try and force through a second referendum on independence.
The First Minister confirmed today that she will seek the “transfer of power” from Westminster so the SNP can officially call the vote.
Ministers have even admitted they will overhaul the discredited 2014 White Paper on separation to ramp up their bid to break up Britain.
Ms Sturgeon told MSPs: “I can confirm today that, during the passage of the bill, we will seek agreement to the transfer of power that will put the referendum beyond legal challenge.”
And the nationalist government confirmed in its small print published today: “The Scottish Government produced a comprehensive plan for an independent Scotland in 2014. The government will now undertake the necessary work to update that plan and ensure that people have the information they need to make informed choices over the future of the country.”
At the centre of the original White Paper were plans for Scotland’s oil industry to financially sustain a separate state, bringing in revenues of up to £10 billion a year.
But today, the First Minister said her government’s support for the oil and gas industry was now only “conditional”.
Scottish Conservative interim leader Jackson Carlaw said:
“It’s typical of the First Minister that her statement both began and ended with independence.
“It really is the be-all-and-end-all for her nationalist government.
“Not only did she confirm her plan to push ahead with an unnecessary and unwanted referendum bill.
“But we also learned the utterly discredited White Paper from 2014 is finally set to be binned.
“Perhaps, because she discards it altogether, she should apologise to the people of Scotland for the deceit contained within it.
“The people of Scotland have had enough of this. They simply want Nicola Sturgeon to give it a rest.”
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