The UK's Supreme Court has ruled that Scotland's devolved government cannot hold a second referendum on independence without the consent of Westminster.
Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon had announced a poll for October 2023 on the question of whether the union between Scotland and England should be dissolved. Voters in Scotland rejected the proposal in 2014.
The UK government has refused to agree to a second referendum.
Britain's highest court was asked to rule on whether the devolved Scottish Parliament could hold a referendum without Westminster's agreement.
On Wednesday, it delivered its verdict.
“The Scottish Parliament does not have the power to legislate for a referendum on Scottish independence,” Supreme Court President Baron Robert Reed said.
The judges said a vote would need to be agreed to by the UK government, as was the case in 2014.
The power to call a referendum was reserved to Westminster, and therefore “the Scottish Parliament does not have the power to legislate for a referendum on Scottish independence”, Lord Reed said, delivering the unanimous ruling.
So what happens next?
Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain, Scotland's senior law officer, will not be able to approve a referendum bill for the parliament in Edinburgh.
The Scottish government will have to continue to pushing for a Section 30 order that would provide Holyrood with the necessary powers to call another vote.
No stopping Sturgeon
Ms Sturgeon said she will not be deterred.
“A law that doesn't allow Scotland to choose our own future without [UK parliament] consent exposes as myth any notion of the UK as a voluntary partnership,” the Scottish National Party leader tweeted.
“Today’s ruling blocks one route to Scotland’s voice being heard on independence — but in a democracy our voice cannot and will not be silenced.”
In June, she said that if her government lost the case, she would make the next UK general election a de facto plebiscite on dissolving Scotland’s 315-year union with England.
Speaking on Wednesday following the announcement, she said she now intends to forge ahead with that plan.
"The fact is the SNP is not abandoning the referendum route, Westminster is blocking it," Ms Sturgeon said.
"In that scenario, unless we give up on democracy — and for the avoidance of any doubt, I for one am simply not prepared to do that — we must and we will find another democratic, lawful and constitutional means by which the Scottish people can express their will."
Election call
That can "only be" an election, Ms Sturgeon said.
"The next national election scheduled for Scotland is, of course, the UK general election, making that both the first and the most obvious opportunity to seek what I described back in June as a de facto referendum," she added.
"As with any proposition in any party manifesto in any election, it is of course up to the people how they respond. No party can dictate the basis on which people cast their votes. But a party can be, indeed should be, crystal clear about the purpose for which it is seeking popular support.
"In this case for the SNP it will be to establish, just as in a referendum, majority support in Scotland for independence so we can then achieve independence."
If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
The Florida Project
Director: Sean Baker
Starring: Bria Vinaite, Brooklynn Prince, Willem Dafoe
Four stars
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
How much of your income do you need to save?
The more you save, the sooner you can retire. Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.com, says if you save just 5 per cent of your salary, you can expect to work for another 66 years before you are able to retire without too large a drop in income.
In other words, you will not save enough to retire comfortably. If you save 15 per cent, you can forward to another 43 working years. Up that to 40 per cent of your income, and your remaining working life drops to just 22 years. (see table)
Obviously, this is only a rough guide. How much you save will depend on variables, not least your salary and how much you already have in your pension pot. But it shows what you need to do to achieve financial independence.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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How Filipinos in the UAE invest
A recent survey of 10,000 Filipino expatriates in the UAE found that 82 per cent have plans to invest, primarily in property. This is significantly higher than the 2014 poll showing only two out of 10 Filipinos planned to invest.
Fifty-five percent said they plan to invest in property, according to the poll conducted by the New Perspective Media Group, organiser of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition. Acquiring a franchised business or starting up a small business was preferred by 25 per cent and 15 per cent said they will invest in mutual funds. The rest said they are keen to invest in insurance (3 per cent) and gold (2 per cent).
Of the 5,500 respondents who preferred property as their primary investment, 54 per cent said they plan to make the purchase within the next year. Manila was the top location, preferred by 53 per cent.
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The biog
Name: Timothy Husband
Nationality: New Zealand
Education: Degree in zoology at The University of Sydney
Favourite book: Lemurs of Madagascar by Russell A Mittermeier
Favourite music: Billy Joel
Weekends and holidays: Talking about animals or visiting his farm in Australia
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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TO A LAND UNKNOWN
Director: Mahdi Fleifel
Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa
Rating: 4.5/5
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