IAN Blackford has signalled that a decision on a second independence referendum will not be made until November at the earliest and possibly even later.
The SNP's Westminster leader made clear it would be “presumptuous” to set out a definitive position until the terms of any Brexit deal were known.
This means that Nicola Sturgeon will not be in a position at next month’s SNP conference to give a clear view on Scotland’s constitutional future because the outcome of the Brexit negotiations will still be unknown.
This is likely to disappoint many Nationalists, including those who this weekend will gather in Glasgow for a Hope over Fear Yes rally.
The Scottish Government’s future agenda, published last week, stated: “At the end of the period of negotiation with the EU, and when the terms of Brexit are clearer, we will set out our judgement on the best way forward for Scotland at that time, including our view on the precise timescale for offering people a choice over the country’s future.”
It is widely thought that any deal with Brussels will now not be sealed at the October 18/19 European Council but could come at a special summit pencilled in for November 13.
This will be followed by ratification by parliaments across the EU as well as the so-called "meaningful vote" at Westminster on the final deal, possibly before Christmas.
However, Mr Blackford was clear that, as the informed debate on the economics of independence continued following the publication of the Growth Commission’s report, no decision on when or whether to call for a second independence vote could be made until after the details of a deal were fully known.
He told reporters at a Westminster briefing: “The judgement we have made is we can reflect on what the options are for Scotland once we know the Brexit outcome. Now, some time ago there was an expectation that would happen in October but that is probably unlikely in October…It will be presumptuous of us to give an outline of what we will do until we know what the Brexit destination is.
“There has to be clarity. You can’t do it in a vacuum…We have to be clear what the outcome is going to be…We will know by the end of the year.”
When it was suggested that the First Minister would, therefore, not announce anything definitive at conference, the Highland MP replied: “I understand why people in the SNP and the wider Yes movement, perhaps more widely than Scotland, want to know what the future opportunities will be for having a debate and a formal decision on Scotland’s constitutional future.
“I am grateful there is now an informed debate which is taking place on some of the economics of the question of Scottish independence, let’s continue that debate and that debate can be informed of the circumstances that we know Scotland will be in post-Brexit.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel