SCOTLAND is in an independence “groundhog day” thanks to Nicola Sturgeon, her predecessor has claimed.
Alex Salmond likened the SNP’s progress on holding another referendum to the Bill Murray film in a radio interview this morning.
The ALBA party leader said the country was making ”no progress whatsoever” under the stewardship of Ms Sturgeon, and accused her of making excuses over the delay in holding another vote.
Speaking to Times Radio, the former First Minister said: “ Listeners and viewers will remember that Bill Murray film, Groundhog Day.
“The poor man was caught up in a time loop and it took him weeks to get out of it.
“Unfortunately Nicola [Sturgeon] has placed Scotland in a referendum time loop and it's taken six years and we're making no progress whatsoever.”
He added that despite Groundhg day being a “comedy”, Scotland’s situation was a “tragedy” and explained: “ This is Groundhog Scotland, Groundhog referendum. (We're) being led up to the top of the hill and then marched back down again.
“the Alba message is, look let's get on with this and let's stop finding excuses for preparing and giving Scotland what they've voted for in five successive national elections.”
Mr Salmond also challenged the idea that Boris Johnson could prevent another vote on the constitution, saying: “ To all these people who say ‘What are you going to do when Boris Johnson says no?’, listen.
“If you can face down David Cameron and George Osborne you can certainly face down Boris Johnson and the disco king Michael Gove.
“The idea that Johnson and Gove can stop a Scottish referendum when Cameron and Osborne couldn't, I think is nonsense.
“But it requires political determination to face down Westminster.”
He said that civil servants “should have been working on the new prospectus for six years, but they need to get on with it” and suggested the plans for an independent Scotland put forward in 2014 needed to be “refurbished”.
He added: “It requires a diplomatic mobilisation of people, a legal campaign to assert Scotland's right to self-determination, of the will of democracy and above all the case for independence has to be refurbished for the new world.
“This is not the world of 2014, this is 2021 and beyond. Most obviously, Britain has now Brexited. Therefore, there's huge work to be done on the European policy, of currency policy and borders policy.”
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