SNP ministers would not accept the outcome of a People’s Vote if they disliked the result, Michael Russell has confirmed, just minutes after demanding another Brexit referendum.
The Constitutional Relations Secretary told MSPs that if he could “wave a magic wand” there would be a second EU vote, saying it was “entirely right” that it should happen.
READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon set for Brexit crisis talks with Theresa May
However he then admitted the Scottish Government could reject the outcome, saying it would be “unsupportable” if the UK-wide result differed from the one in Scotland.
The Scottish Tories accused the SNP of “game playing” to pursue Indyref2.
Scotland voted 62-38 against Brexit in 2016, while the overall UK result was 52-48 for Leave.
The row broke out after Mr Russell gave evident to Holyrood’s finance and constitution committee about the current state of the Brexit process.
With Theresa May due to hold talks with Jeremy Corbyn about breaking the impasse at Westminster, Mr Russell said: “I would much rather not have a Brexit and if there is to be [one] I think a confirmatory vote is absolutely essential, given the changes that have taken place over the last two and a half years.”
He went on: “I think that there should be a much longer delay. I think that people should be encouraged to have their say. A People’s Vote is entirely right to happen.
“If I were able to wave a magic wand and get what I want, apart from no Brexit - which has been a complete distraction and disaster for the last two and a half years of massively damaging proportions - then I think it would have to be a very long delay, a referendum, the European elections taking place.”
However, around five minutes later, Tory MSP Murdo Fraser asked if the Scottish Government would accept the result of such a referendum.
He said: “If there were to be a second referendum... giving a choice between the Withdrawal Agreement as it stands and Remain, and let’s say there was a narrow vote, 52 to 48 per cent, in support of the Withdrawal Agreement, would the Scottish Government then accept that needs to proceed?”
READ MORE: Iain Macwhirter: Time to keep calm, and prepare for a No Deal Brexit
Mr Russell replied: “I think it would depend on what the vote in Scotland is... I think a situation in which the people of Scotland continue to support being members of the EU and were denied that option for a second time would be insupportable.
“That’s the position we have. We’re not going to be able to change that today.”
Mr Russell acknowledged the Conservatives would disagree with him.
He told Mr Fraser: “You and I disagree on this matter, we’re not going to reconcile each other on this issue today. I suspect we will never reconcile each other.”
Mr Fraser said afterwards: “Mike Russell has made clear today that yet another referendum on Europe is, in his words, absolutely essential.
“At the same time, Mr Russell also confirmed that the SNP will refuse to accept the result of that referendum unless it goes exactly the way they want it to.
“This is all yet more SNP game playing. Far from compromising in order to deliver an orderly Brexit, the SNP just wants to use Brexit to create yet more grievance and constitutional division. The only priority the SNP has is to deliver on its real goal - a second referendum on independence.”
LibDem MSP Tavish Scott added: "We need to find a solution to Brexit for the whole of the UK. The people’s vote is the right way forward. The public are sick of political infighting and economic worry. With a people’s vote we can make it stop.”
Pamela Nash, chief executive of the anti-independence group Scotland in Union, said the SNP had already ignored the results of the 2014 and 2016 referendums.
She said: "The SNP has a track record of refusing to listen to voters. The Nationalists are trying to weaponise the Brexit crisis in the desperate hope of breaking up the UK.
“Whatever your views on Brexit, independence is not the answer. We are stronger together, and can build a successful future based on our shared history and culture."
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