Following independence, we would then develop a permanent constitution, through a legally-mandated Constitutional Convention. So the paper we are publishing today, that I am delighted to be publishing today, about creating a modern constitution for an independent Scotland, is about that kind of Scotland that we want to see, and ultimately the kind of Scotland that we want to be. The Scottish Government’s plan for doing this is as follows. As soon as practicable, Scotland would move to a new currency, the Scottish pound In the first paper the Scottish Government published, to renew the prospectus on independence, we set out evidence showing independent countries comparable to Scotland were both wealthier and indeed fairer than the UK.

It could for example specifically protect the right to take industrial action, or recognise the rights and interests of our island communities, or contain provisions on the right to adequate housing, the right of communities to own land, or our right as citizens to access healthcare which is free at the point of need. If you care for a friend or family member who cannot cope without your support, t alk to family and friends about who could take over your caring role if you become ill or need to self-isolate (if you do not already have an emergency plan in place). Independence would enable the creation of an economy that works better for everyone who does business in Scotland. The proposals in Building a New Scotland: A stronger economy with independence are designed to help your business to: Investing in infrastructure is a powerful way to boost productivity and economic growth while reducing carbon emissions and helping us reach net zero targets. In the early years of independence, for continuity and practicality, the pound sterling would remain Scotland’s currency.Scottish independence: 19 October 2023 proposed as date for referendum". BBC News. 28 June 2022 . Retrieved 13 July 2022. Paper five of the series sets out the vision of the Scottish Government to adopt an inclusive model of Scottish citizenship following independence for the population, regardless of if they were born in Scotland or define themselves as primarily or exclusively Scottish, and identifies who would become a Scottish citizen at the point of independence, and who could become a Scottish citizen through a process of citizenship application. [20] See also [ edit ] Scottish voters are in favour of the Trident nuclear deterrent being in Scotland. Even in the event of a vote for independence, 45 per cent of Scots polled in 2022 think the nuclear deterrent should be maintained in Scotland, compared to 34 percent against. [170] While in the Union, 58% of Scots believe in the retention of the nuclear deterrent and only 20% definitely want it axed. [171] In the event that Scottish independence meant the nuclear deterrent could no longer be in Scotland, there is a risk that the costs of relocation would make keeping a nuclear deterrent in the British Isles unfeasible. [172] In 2019, the NATO Secretary General said the maintenance of a British nuclear deterrent is important to NATO. [173] In 2022, 73 percent of Scots would want an independent Scotland to be part on NATO and only 8 percent oppose this. [174] The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was formed by the Acts of Union 1800, which united the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of Ireland. Following the Irish War of Independence (1919–21) and the Anglo-Irish Treaty that ended the war, Ireland was partitioned into two states: Southern Ireland, which opted to become independent (and is now known as Republic of Ireland), and Northern Ireland, which – given its geographical extent which tended to ensure a Unionist majority – chose to remain within the United Kingdom.

It will help us think about, and describe, the sort of country we want Scotland to be. And by helping to enhance and protect important rights, it will make a genuine and significant difference to people’s lives. The pro-independence Scottish National Party first became the governing party of the devolved parliament in 2007, and it won an outright majority of seats at the 2011 Scottish Parliament election. This led to an agreement between the Scottish and UK governments to hold the 2014 Scottish independence referendum. Voters were asked: "Should Scotland be an independent country?" [7] 44.7 percent of voters answered "Yes" and 55.3 percent answered "No", with a record voter turnout of 85 percent. This resulted in Scotland remaining in the United Kingdom. [8] [9] For example, sectors like food and drink are major employers in rural areas but are currently experiencing severe labour shortages because of both Brexit and the pandemic. At the 2019 United Kingdom general election, the SNP won 48 out of 59 Scottish seats. Sturgeon asked Prime Minister Boris Johnson for his consent to hold another referendum. [69] However, Johnson declined her request. He said that Sturgeon and her predecessor Alex Salmond had promised that the 2014 referendum would be a "once in a generation" vote. [70]

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The legality of any UK constituent country attaining de facto independence or declaring unilateral independence outside the framework of British constitutional convention is debatable. Under international law, a unilateral declaration might satisfy the principle of the " declarative theory of statehood", but not the " constitutive theory of statehood". Some legal opinion following the Supreme Court of Canada's decision on what steps Quebec would need to take to secede is that Scotland would be unable to unilaterally declare independence under international law if the UK Government permitted a referendum on an unambiguous question on secession. [106] [107] The SNP have not sought a unilateral act, but rather state that a positive vote for independence in a referendum would have "enormous moral and political force... impossible for a future [Westminster] government to ignore", [108] and hence would give the Scottish Government a mandate to negotiate for the passage of an act of the UK Parliament providing for Scotland's secession, in which Westminster renounces its sovereignty over Scotland. [109] Scotland was an independent kingdom through the Middle Ages, and fought wars to maintain its independence from England. The two kingdoms were united in personal union in the year 1603 when the Scottish King James VI became James I of England, and the two kingdoms united politically into one kingdom called Great Britain in 1707. [6] This movement united the countries which ended the wars of independence and created relative peace. Political campaigns for Scottish self-government began in the 19th century, initially in the form of demands for home rule within the United Kingdom. Two referendums on devolution were held in 1979 and 1997, with a devolved Scottish Parliament being established on 1 July 1999.

Stewart, Ward (13 June 2020). "Nicola Sturgeon to publish 'Building a New Scotland' paper on independence". The National. This would help ensure that our businesses can access the skills and people they need. It would also meet the needs of those parts of Scotland most at risk of depopulation. benefit from investments made by the Building a New Scotland Fund, including in more energy-efficient business premises, net zero technologies, and better digital and mobile connectivity Scotland’s economy has the potential to match those successful countries. We have abundant natural resources. For example:

Westminster has already been able to undermine the devolution settlement, override decisions made by an elected Scottish parliament. From 1603 Scotland and England shared the same monarch in a personal union when James VI of Scotland was declared King of England and Scotland in what was known as the Union of the Crowns. After James II and VII was deposed in 1688 amid Catholic-Protestant disputes, and as the line of Protestant Stuarts showed signs of failing (as indeed occurred in 1714), English fears that Scotland would select a different monarch, potentially causing conflict within Great Britain, and the bankruptcy of many Scottish nobles through the Darien scheme led to the formal union of the two kingdoms in 1707, with the Treaty of Union and subsequent Acts of Union, to form the Kingdom of Great Britain. Scottish Jacobite resistance to the union, led by descendants of James II and VII including Bonnie Prince Charlie, continued until 1746.

Bol, David (14 July 2022). "Nicola Sturgeon to set out strategy for independent Scotland to overhaul democracy". The Herald.Being in the EU as an independent country for the first time would allow Scotland to combine the powers of independence with membership of the European Single Market. This is the world’s largest single market: by population it is seven times the size of the UK. With the publication of the draft Independence Referendum Bill [114] on 22 March 2021 [115] the question of legality was raised again. On 28 June 2022, Sturgeon proposed to hold a referendum in 2023, provided that the legality and constitutionality of the referendum is guaranteed. [88] The Scottish Government stated that their proposed referendum is "consultative, not self-executing". In UK law, a referendum can be consultative (such as the Brexit referendum) or determinative (such as the AV referendum, which, if passed, would have automatically brought in provisions for the Alternative Vote). [93] The Scotland Act does not explicitly state whether non-binding referendums on reserve powers were reserved. [93] In the Scottish Government's written case published in July 2022, the Lord Advocate observed that "the Union of the Kingdoms of Scotland and England has been superseded as a matter of law and exists only as an historical fact. The [Scotland Act] would therefore reserve something that no longer exists." [93] The Scottish Parliament is a unicameral legislature comprising 129 members. 73 members (57 pc) represent individual constituencies and are elected on a first past the post system. 56 members (43 pc) are elected in eight different electoral regions by the additional member system. Members serve for a four-year term. The monarch appoints one Member of the Scottish Parliament, on the nomination of the Parliament, to be First Minister, with the convention being that the leader of the party with the largest number of seats is appointed First Minister, although any member who can command the confidence of a majority of the chamber could conceivably be appointed First Minister. All other Ministers are appointed and dismissed by the First Minister, and together they make up the Scottish Government, the executive arm of government. [35] Scottish independence ( Scottish Gaelic: Neo-eisimeileachd na h-Alba; Scots: Scots unthirldom [1]) is the idea of Scotland as a sovereign state, independent from the United Kingdom, and refers to the political movement that is campaigning to bring it about. [2] [3] [4] [5]