The Scottish Government has urged Westminster to commit to holding another referendum if a pro-independence majority is elected next year.
In a new 22-page paper, Your Right To Decide, released on Thursday, the Government stressed that Scots should be asked again about independence depending on the outcome of the Holyrood election.
Released ahead of an event to be held by First Minister John Swinney in Edinburgh, the paper said: “The Scottish Government believes that the precedent of 2011 demonstrates that it is for the people of Scotland to decide when a referendum is to be held, and that when they do it is for the governments of Scotland and the United Kingdom to take the steps required to facilitate that.
“That precedent sets an expectation that the people of Scotland take with them into the ballot box when voting.
“What is required is for the United Kingdom Government to accept and re-state that the UK Government would not seek to prevent a clear majority of people in any part of the UK deciding to leave it through a fair and democratic process.”
The First Minister said, earlier this year, that another vote would require an SNP majority, but the paper appeared to suggest that commitment has been watered down to that of an independence-supporting majority of MSPs after next year’s poll.
“In the Scottish Government’s view, between the significant and material changes both domestically and internationally since the 2014 independence referendum, and the precedent of the seven-year rule applying to referendums in Northern Ireland, enough time has passed since the last independence referendum to justify the question being asked again,” the document said.
“But more fundamentally, the period of time between independence referendums – including the question, if relevant, of whether a generation has passed since the last one – is a matter which the people of Scotland are best able to judge.
“And if they choose to elect a Scottish Parliament that supports the holding of a referendum, then it is their judgment that sufficient time has passed, and it is for their elected representatives to take the steps required to give effect to that decision, including making requests of the Scottish and UK Governments to negotiate the transfer of power required for a lawful referendum.”
The paper also claimed that having a right – such as the right to leave the United Kingdom – without a straightforward way to exercise it is “no right at all”.
“The Scottish Government believes that any failure to recognise a decision by the people of Scotland, in response to a party’s clear manifesto commitment to a referendum, is incompatible with claims that the UK is a voluntary union, and claims to support the people of Scotland’s right to decide their constitutional future,” the document said.
“The Scottish Government believes that in circumstances where a clear decision has been made by the people of Scotland to hold a referendum, it is for both the Scottish Government and the UK Government to acknowledge and respect that decision by beginning inter-governmental discussions intended to provide a constitutional, lawful way to fulfil the instruction of the people.”
A UK Government spokesperson said: “This is simply not a priority for Scots. The UK Government’s priority is delivering for people in Scotland.
“The Scottish Government should be focussed on working with us on our plan for change: to grow the economy, improve our public services, and put more money in people’s pockets – that is what Scots want to see.”
Scottish Conservative deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said: “If John Swinney was genuinely interested in seeing the wishes of the Scottish people respected, he’d stop relentlessly pushing for independence and focus on the day job.
“Under the SNP, our essential services are on their knees and hard-working Scots are paying the highest taxes in the UK.
“The public want John Swinney to cut NHS waiting lists, tackle classroom violence, fix our roads and grow our economy. But instead of focusing on the mess his Government has created, he’s desperately trying to shore up his Nationalist base.”
