NICOLA Sturgeon has told Boris Johnson not to stand in the way of a second Scottish independence referendum.
In a letter to the new Prime Minister, she demanded he respect the “right of the people of Scotland to determine their own future.”
Johnson’s is expected to visit Scotland in the next week, with reports suggesting he could go to Aberdeenshire to meet with voters.
He is expected to shun any Bute House summit with Sturgeon, instead meeting her at a joint ministerial committee with Welsh First Minister, Mark Drakeford.
Yesterday, in his first speech as Prime Minister, there was little mention of Scotland, with almost all the policy announcements for England.
READ MORE: Boris Johnson won't meet Nicola Sturgeon at Bute House on first trip to Scotland as PM
Johnson said simply that he would be Prime Minister of the whole UK, stating: “It is time we unleashed the productive power, not just of London and the South East, but of every corner of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
“The awesome foursome that are incarnated in that red, white and blue flag.”
He also used his speech to double-down on his commitment to leave the EU on October 31, with or without a deal.
In her letter Sturgeon said Scottish Government analysis had warned that this hard Brexit would result in “lasting harm to the people of Scotland.”
She wrote: “given your public comments about leaving the EU on October 31 with or without a deal, ‘come what may’ and ‘do or die’ , it is now - more than ever - essential that in Scotland we have an alternative option.
“In line with the democratic mandate given to us in 2016, the Scottish Government will continue to make preparations to give people in Scotland the choice of becoming an independent country.
“The right of the people of Scotland to determine their own future is a basic democratic principle that must be respected.
“Similarly any decision of the Scottish Parliament on whether to give people that choice must be respected. The Parliament will consider the necessary framework legislation for a referendum after the summer recess, and I look forward to taking this matter forward with you once MSPs have had the opportunity to debate the issue further. “ During the Tory leadership campaign, Johnson insisted that “Brexit done right” would “cement and intensify the union.”
READ MORE: Ruth Wishart: Disaster looms – we must fire indyref2 starting gun now
A recent poll suggested 53% of Scottish voters would back independence if Johnson became Prime Minister.
Yesterday, standing on the steps of Downing Street just minutes after being asked to form a government by the Queen, he insisted he would give the country “the leadership it deserves”.
He promised to defy “the doubters, the doomsters and the gloomsters”.
The “people who bet against Britain are going to lose their shirts”, Johnson said as he promised to take personal responsibility for Brexit.
“Never mind the backstop, the buck stops here,” he added.
Johnson promised that he would get a new deal from the EU, but, he added, that agreement would need to involve no checks and no “anti-democratic backstop.” And if that didn’t happen, he added, it would be because “Brussels refuses any further to negotiate”.
He said the country’s planning for a no-deal Brexit would be stepped up “because it is only common sense to prepare”.
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