Michael Gove repeatedly dodges questions over government blocking Scottish referendum in court
Nicola Sturgeon has said it would be “absurd and completely outrageous” if the UK government went to court to try to block a second referendum on Scottish independence.
Speaking on BBC’s Andrew Marr Show after the SNP’s victory in the Scottish elections, Ms Sturgeon said it should not be up to either her or the UK’s leadership to decide on a Scottish referendum.
“It’s up to the Scottish people to decide that question and in this election they have voted overwhelmingly for the SNP,” she said.
However, she said her first priority was “to continue to steer the country through the Covid pandemic” before moving forward with a second independence referendum.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has invited the SNP leader for crisis talks, telling her in a letter that UK residents are “best served when we work together”.
Meanwhile, Keir Starmer is expected to reshuffle Labour’s top team today following the party’s disastrous local election results, The Independent understands.
The move comes after Mr Starmer already sacked his deputy Angela Rayner from her frontbench role following the party’s disappointing results, including losing a key by-election in Hartlepool and losing seats across England.
IndyRef2 going to court would be ‘very grave’ situation, Sturgeon says
Nicola Sturgeon has said she does not believe a bid for a second Scottish referendum would end up in court.
“If we get to that point we will get to a situation where Scotland is being told that it has no democratic route to become an independent country,” she said on BBC’s Andrew Marr Show.
“The implications of that would be very grave indeed and I don’t think we will get there,” she said.
Her comments come as Michael Gove appeared to dodge questions on whether the Johnson government would consider fighting the bid in court.
Ultimately, Ms Sturgeon said: “There is a fundamental issue of democracy here. We have just won a landslide.
“I am being asked to answer the question ‘what do you do if a UK Government refuses point blank to accept democracy’. That is just an absurd position for anybody to be put into.”
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 11:08
Gove says talks with Uefa to host Champions League final ‘ongoing’
Michael Gove has said “talks are ongoing” with Uefa about the possibility of hosting the Champions League final in the UK.
Asked whether the game between Manchester City and Chelsea should be held in the UK, rather than Turkey, which is now on the UK’s red travel list, Mr Gove said: “Personally speaking, I wouldn’t mind if it were held here in Scotland.”
“I wouldn’t mind if it were held in Hampden (Park), for obvious reasons Hampden would be better than Ibrox,” he said.
“I have an interest as my son is a Chelsea fan and so he would far rather it be held in the UK,” he also joked.
The Cabinet Office minister said “talks are ongoing”, with “Oliver Dowden, the Culture Secretary…talking to Uefa and others about that”.
“I think it would be a really good thing but I don’t want to cut across the conversations that Oliver’s having,” he said.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 10:41
IndyRef2 ‘will still happen’ even if Johnson government fights bid in court, SNP deputy leader says
A second referendum on Scottish independence “will still happen” even if the Johnson government seeks to fight the bid in court, SNP deputy leader Keith Brown has said.
Speaking on Sophy Ridge on Sunday, Mr Brown said he believes that even if the prime minister tries to “use the legal process to subvert Scottish democracy…the referendum will still happen”.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 10:34
Keir Starmer to announce reshuffle of top team
Labour leader Keir Starmer is soon expected to reshuffle his top team amid outrage over the party’s poor electoral performance and backlash over the decision to sack Angela Rayner as party chair.
The Independent understands that the Labour leader is expected to unveil changes to his shadow cabinet later on Sunday.
Political correspondent Ashley Cowburn has the story:
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 10:15
An independent Scotland would keep British pound ‘for years’, Nicola Sturgeon says
An independent Scotland would likely keep the British pound “for years,” Nicola Sturgeon has said.
Speaking on The Andrew Marr Show, Ms Sturgeon was questioned on whether Scotland would move to its own currency shortly after leaving the UK, if Scotland were to vote in favour of independence in a referendum.
Ms Sturgeon said that Scotland would keep the pound “as long as it was economically in our interest to do that”.
The country would then “move over time to a Scottish currency”, she said.
Asked what an “extended transition period” might look like for Scotland, Ms Sturgeon said the country would likely retain the pound for “a period of years”.
Pressed on what it would mean for Scottish independence to be “dependent on the Bank of England for years”, Ms Sturgeon replied: “These are all decisions that people will all weigh up in an independence referendum”.
She further stressed that she did not accept the suggestion that “Scotland will be poorer” if it decides to leave the UK.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 10:13
Sturgeon says it would be ‘absurd’ if Government took IndyRef2 to court
Nicola Sturgeon has said it would be “absurd and completely outrageous” if the Johnson government took IndyRef2 to court.
Acknowledging comments from Michael Gove discouraging planning for a referendum on Scottish independence, Ms sturgeon said that ultimately, it “shouldn’t be up to him or I to decide”.
“It’s up to the Scottish people to decide that question and in this election they have voted overwhelmingly for the SNP,” she said.
Ms Sturgeon questioned Mr Gove’s refusal to state clearly whether the Government would fight the referendum in court, asserting that any such effort would be “outrageous”.
However, she said her first priority was “to continue to steer the country through the Covid pandemic”.
However, she said that she had also campaigned on the promise to “after the crisis to give the people of Scotland the ability to choose their own future in the referendum”.
“Thee fact that we’re sitting here having a debate about whether or not that outcome is going to be respected says a lot about the lack of respect for Scottish democracy that this UK government has demonstrated for some time now,” she said.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 10:03
‘Hugging’ to return amid easing of restrictions, Gove says
Residents across England could soon be able to hug their loved ones, Michael Gove has said.
Speaking on The Andrew Marr Show on Sunday, Mr Gove said he believes that “friendly contact” and “intimate contact” between friends and family members would soon be allowed amid an easing of coronavirus restrictions.
He said he more would be revealed over the coming days. However, he said he did not want to “pre-empt” coming decisions.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 09:52
Gove says Scotland is ‘of course’ allowed to leave UK
Michael Gove has acknowledged that Scotland could leave the UK, even as he continued to block questions on whether the Boris Johnson government would fight a second Scottish independence vote.
Speaking on The Andrew Marr show shortly after appearing on Sophy Ridge on Sunday, where he repeatedly refused to state whether the government would fight a second independence referendum in court, Mr Gove said Scotland is “of course” allowed to leave the UK.
Scotland, he said, could gain independence from the union through “a legal referendum, which would allow people to make their choice”.
However, he said that in this case, he believed that a Scotland vote on independence should not move forward due to the coronavirus pandemic and due to Nicola Sturgeon’s failure to “secure a majority”.
“We absolutely need to be laser-focused on making sure that the vaccination continues to be a success and that we work towards recovery,” he said.
Mr Gove further noted that Ms Sturgeon “didn’t secure a majority as Alex Salmond did in 2011 and that is a significant difference”.
“It is not the case now as we see that the people of Scotland are agitating for a referendum,” he said.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 09:48
Ian Murray claims Angela Rayner ‘hasn’t been sacked’
Labour frontbencher Ian Murray has claimed that Angela Rayner “hasn’t been sacked” from her role following Labour’s dismal election results.
Instead, he claimed the now-former Labour chairperson and national campaign coordinator had instead been offered a “significant promotion” following the party’s major losses.
“This is another example of where we seem to be having political dialogue from social media,” Mr Murray said, speaking on Sophy Ridge on Sunday.
“Angela Rayner hasn’t been sacked, as I understand it,” he said.
Rather, he said Ms Rayner “has been offered a significant promotion to take her from the back office” to a “front office” role.
Mr Murray appeared unable, however, to say what front office role Ms Rayner would be taking up.
However, he asserted that Mr Starmer was taking “full responsibility” of Labour’s dismal election results, including by leading a “reshuffle” if necessary.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 09:38
Starmer set to reshuffle Labour’s top team after disastrous election results
Keir Starmer is expected to reshuffle Labour’s top team today, The Independent understands.
The move comes on the heels of Labour’s disastrous election results.
It also comes after Mr Starmer already sacked his deputy Angela Rayner from her frontbench role following the dismal results.
Chantal Da Silva9 May 2021 09:23