Ian Blackford claims it is still SNP 'intention' to stage 2023 independence referendum
24.04.2022 - 13:23
/ dailyrecord.co.uk
Ian Blackford has claimed that plans for a 2023 referendum are still on and that an independent Scotland would be committed to getting rid of nuclear weapons despite the renewed threat from Russia.
The SNP Westminster leader has in the past said that the war in Ukraine should not affect plans for a second referendum.
But senior SNP figures have openly doubted the 2023 deadline and Boris Johnson has completely ruled out granting powers to stage a vote.
Asked directly by the BBC’s Sophy Raworth on Sunday if there would be a referendum next year, Blackford replied the SNP had a manifesto commitment to delivering an independence vote.
He said: “The First Minister has reiterated that in the local elections over the course of the last few days. Our intention is to have a referendum in the first half of the Scottish Parliament, which means before the end of 2023.”
“But this is a question for Boris Johnson and the Conservative government. Will they respect democracy? Will they respect the rights of the Scots who sent MSPs to the Scottish Parliament with a mandate to deliver that independence referendum?”
He added: “We were given a mandate by the people of Scotland in that election last year, an independence majority in the Scottish Parliament. It is the right of the people of Scotland.”
“The fact that we have a government in London, Boris Johnson’s government, with no normal moral authority, the fact that we’re facing the cost of living crisis, at the root of all of that as well the costs that come with Brexit as well.
"There has to be a better way forward for an independent Scotland and that is giving people that choice.”
Blackford also said SNP plans for nuclear disarmament under independence would be “an opportunity for other