After the SNP fell short of a majority by just one seat in the Scottish Parliament elections, a stand off has formed between Nicola Sturgeon and the UK government. The First Minister has heralded a pro-independence Scottish parliament majority in Holyrood – arguing that when you take the Green party’s gains north of the border into account, there is a clear case for a second independence referendum. Sturgeon plans to press ahead and legislate for a border poll – suggesting that the only way Boris Johnson can stop her is to go to court.
The UK government response so far is to not engage and instead talk about the whole of the UK working together to make the Covid recovery a success. In that vein, the Prime Minister has attempted to get on the front foot by sending a letter to the First Minister – which could also be summarised as light trolling from the UK government – praising the SNP’s commitment to the post-Covid recovery and invited her to join ministers at a UK summit to discuss the shared challenges. The
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