“It’s time to talk about independence,” said Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon on Tuesday. Sturgeon believes that Scotland is “more prepared” than at the time of the 2014 referendum, and that the referendum is a desire of the citizens – parliamentary elections were held in Scotland in May 2021 and independence reached an absolute majority.

With a view to the referendum on the future, the Government will now take up arguments in favour of independence, and on Tuesday Sturgeon has presented the first of them, Richer, Happier, Fairer. Why not Scotland? It's about the call. Sturgeon argues that Scotland would benefit from independence, but that in any case the election should be “informed”.

2023 with or without permission

The Government plans to hold the referendum before the end of 2023. The first step would be to present a draft law to the Scottish Parliament that takes it up. This is the intention presented by the Scottish National Party (SNP) in January, and Sturgeon has announced that for a few weeks he will present a “major update”. If the road is maintained so far, Sturgeon would ask Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister, for authorisation to hold a referendum, and Johnson would reject it. Without his authorization, Sturgeon commands citizens a “legal” referendum: “I will establish, if necessary, a legal channel to move forward. The UK Government does not respect democracy or the rule of law. The President of the Scottish Government has stated that the UK Prime Minister does not have “democratic authority or moral majority in Scotland”.

Unionists, against

Faced with Sturgeon’s prediction, Johnson points out that it is not “time” to promote referendums. And both the Scottish Conservative Party and the Labour Party talk about Sturgeon’s “obsession” in questioning the legitimacy of the referendum.