Without a referendum

SCOTLAND could achieve independence even without a new referendum.

This was the most surprising message of the campaign launch speech by Ash Regan, the third candidate to lead the Scottish National Party following Nicola Sturgeon’s decision to stand down.

According to Regan, if pro­independence parties won a majority of seats and votes at a general election “the international community will see that and I think that clear instruction should be enough to trigger those negotiations,” she was quoted by a local news source as saying.

However, this approach is not a popular one, as it is very similar to an original plan that was already shelved by the SNP following Sturgeon’s resignation announcement.

Several opinion polls also show that such a proposal would cost the SNP an election if it was the central theme of the campaign.