Proposed second Scottish independence referendum

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A second referendum (commonly referred to as indyref2) on the independence of Scotland from the United Kingdom (UK) has been proposed by the Scottish Government. An independence referendum was first held on 18 September 2014, with 55% voting "No" to independence. The Scottish Government stated in its white paper for independence that voting Yes was a "once in a generation opportunity to follow a different path, and choose a new and better direction for our nation".^[1] Following the "No" vote, the cross party Smith Commission proposed areas that could be devolved to the Scottish Parliament; this led to the passing of the Scotland Act 2016,^[2] formalising new devolved policy areas in time for the 2016 Scottish Parliament election campaign.^[3]

The pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) said before the 2016 election that a second independence referendum should be held if there was a material change of circumstances, such as the UK leaving the European Union.^[4] The SNP formed a minority government following the election.^[5] The "Leave" side won the Brexit referendum in June 2016. 62% of votes in Scotland were opposed to Brexit.^[6] In 2017, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon gained approval of the Scottish Parliament to seek a "Section 30 Order" under the Scotland Act 1998 to hold an independence referendum "when the shape of the UK's Brexit deal will become clear".^[7][8] No Prime Minister to date has transferred power under Section 30.^{[9][10][11][12][13]}

In January 2021, the SNP stated that, if pro-independence parties won a majority in the 2021 Scottish parliament election, the Scottish Government would introduce a bill for an independence referendum.^[14] The SNP and Scottish Green Party (who also support independence) won a majority of seats in the election, and entered government together under the Bute House Agreement. In June 2022, Sturgeon announced plans to hold a referendum on 19 October 2023. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson rejected Sturgeon's request to hold a referendum in July 2022.^[15] The question of whether a referendum can take place without the UK government's agreement was referred to the UK Supreme Court,^[16][17][18] which ruled in November 2022 that an independence referendum is outside the competence of the Scottish Parliament.^[19]