LONDON (AP) – The Scottish National Party and the Scottish Greens agreed on Friday to a power-sharing deal that does not reach a coalition government but could pave the way for another referendum on Scotland’s independence from the UK in the next two years.
The two parties, which have been closed in negotiations since May after the SNP was left with a general majority seat in the Scottish elections, will consolidate the pro-independence majority in Edinburgh’s decentralized parliament for the next five years.
The SNP has ruled since 2007 and its leader Nicola Sturgeon has been Prime Minister of Scotland since late 2014 after losing the independence vote earlier this year.
“The publication of this agreement today certainly marks a historic moment,” he said. “Working together to build a greener, fairer and more independent Scotland is innovative.”
Although the Scottish Parliament has a number of powers, such as health, education and energy, many economic and security issues remain within the orbit of the British government in London.
Under the terms of the agreement, two green lawmakers will be appointed ministers, the first time the party has that power anywhere in the UK. In return, green lawmakers will support the Sturgeon government in votes of confidence, as well as in annual budgets.
Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie said the recovery from the coronavirus pandemic requires a change in the way politics is done.
“We need to build a fairer and more compassionate country and do everything in our power to deal with climate and natural emergencies and deliver a fair transition for all of Scotland,” he said.
The deal is likely to lay the groundwork for a showdown with the British government over Scotland’s independence. Sturgeon reiterated his view that he wants to hold another referendum on the issue in the first half of this parliament – essentially before the end of 2024 – as long as the pandemic has existed in the past.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, the leader of the Conservative Party, would have the highest authority to allow or not another referendum on Scottish independence. Johnson appears with the intention of resisting another vote, establishing the possibility of renewing tensions between his government and Sturgeon’s decentralized administration.
He has consistently argued that the issue was resolved in a referendum in September 2014, when 55% of Scottish voters were in favor of continuing to be part of the UK. Proponents of another vote say the situation has changed fundamentally because of Brexit, with Scotland outside the European Union against it. his will. In the 2016 Brexit referendum, 52% of the UK voted to leave the EU, while 62% of Scots voted to stay.
Sturgeon said it would be a mistake for Johnson to stand in a referendum and that the time is right for the Scottish Parliament.
There is growing talk that the whole issue may end up in the courts, but Sturgeon has said that any attempt by the British government to frustrate Scotland’s democratic will would only fuel the desire for independence.