Are There Alternatives to a Second Scottish Independence Referendum?
Two weeks ago, I wrote about Scotland and the implications that leaving the EU could mean for the country. Scotland now faces the situation that many inhabitants feared: The leave voters won the referendum, whereas a Scottish majority voted for remain (62%). There are now several options how Scotland can stay in the EU. As we all know, people could decide in a second independence referendum to leave the UK and to become an independent country again. A second possibility that is less known (and which I will therefore explain) lies in the Scotland Act from 1998.
This act states that Scotland has a right to veto laws that concern Scotland in particular. Article 29 makes it possible for Scotland to implement EU rights even if the UK as a whole does not pass these laws. This way, Scotland could stay a ‘light’ member of the EU and keep their orientation towards Europe. How this could look in detail is very unclear and would probably to a lot of trouble between Scotland and England. Aditionally, the UK does not have written laws such as ours in Germany, the laws are much more based on precedent cases, which we do not have for the situation of the Brexit.
I therefore think that it does not seem very likely that Scotland will rely on the Scotland Act. A second referendum would be a much more probable solution especially when looking at the number of remain votes in Scotland and the fact that Sturgeon has almost the majority in the Scottish parliament (only two seats are missing and it will be likely that other party member also want to stay in the EU).
Sources:
