NICOLA Sturgeon to open to sitting down and potentially compromising on her independence strategy with Boris Johnson’s successor.
Under the First Minister’s strategy, in absence of Westminster permission for a re-run of the 2014 vote to be held, Holyrood will legislate to hold its own referendum, subject to the Supreme Court ruling whether the move is legally sound within the limits of devolution.
If “no legal routes” exist, the First Minister has stressed that the next UK general election wlll become a “de facto referendum” on independence.
But it is unlikely that any of the Tory leadership candidates will change the UK Government’s stance on refusing to allow a second independence referendum to take place.
READ MORE: 'They all look bad': Nicola Sturgeon warns new PM will drag the Tories to the right
Ms Sturgeon was asked if she would compromise on her independence strategy. The First Minister stressed that under the agreement with David Cameron, “we had a negotiation”.
She added: “In principle, yes - in terms of the detail, I will be open to a negotiation. “And in any negotiation, you have to be prepared to compromise. What I will not compromise on is the principle.”
The First Minister said she was not willing to “continue to beat my head off a wall” in asking the UK Government to agree to a referendum being held.
She added: “That’s not me closing my mind to that path.
“It’s still the best option to have two governments opposed on the substance coming together to agree the process.
“If the new prime minister is open to that, I will be open to sitting down and in a spirit of compromise, seeking to come to an agreement.”
READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon launches second paper for independent Scotland
Scottish Conservative constitution spokesperson, Donald Cameron said that “Nicola Sturgeon and the SNP need to give it a rest and focus instead on the real priorities of the Scottish public”.
He added: “Nicola Sturgeon is all too happy to shamefully use her podium at Bute House to push her political obsession and have valuable civil servants’ time and resources wasted on working on the SNP’s only priority.
“She knows the vast majority of people in Scotland don’t want another divisive independence referendum next year.
“They want her government focused on tackling the global cost-of-living crisis, helping our NHS to get through the ever-increasing backlogs in treatment and supporting our post-pandemic recovery.”
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