Pro-independence party wins Scottish majority, vows referendum

by admin
May 7, 2011

A party advocating Scotland’s independence from Britain has won a surprising majority in the Scottish Parliament in last Thursday’s elections.

It is the first time the Scottish National Party (SNP) has taken a majority in the devolved national assembly which was established in 1999.

The head of the SNP, Alex Salmond, who will serve another term as Scotland's first minister, pledged to introduce a plebiscite on Scottish independence within the next five years.

"The SNP can finally claim that we have lived up to that accolade as the national party of Scotland," he said.

"That is why, in this term of the Parliament, we shall bring forward a referendum and trust the people with Scotland's own constitutional future."

According to the SNP, the Scottish Parliament has a say of spending on less than 20% of the government revenue generated from the region.

Notably, although Britain’s three main parties are opposed to Scotland’s independence, the government has firmly declared it would not block a referendum.

See reports by the BBC here and here

Photo Wattle Cheung

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