In a surprise move, Boris Johnson could be planning to call a snap Scottish independence referendum. The bombshell decision would mark a dramatic shift from the Prime Minister’s approach since he has repeatedly rejected calls for a referendum from Nicola Sturgeon. The BBC’s Rajdeep Sandhu told the Scottish Sunday Show that people inside No10 are mulling over whether to call a surprise referendum and put the SNP on the backfoot.
The Sunday Show host Martin Geissler pointed to the Scottish Herald’s front cover, whether it discusses whether Boris will announce IndyRef2.
Ms Sandhu explained: “This is a conversation that comes back around quite often.
“It does bubble away in Westminster as one of a long list of things that could be on the table.
“If there is a pro-independence majority of MSPs in Holyrood after this election, they will go and ask for that independence referendum.”
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She continued: “The question is always, what will Boris Johnson do? What will he say?
“Publicly they always say, ‘No, we don’t think there should be another referendum’.
“But there are questions about whether there are other tactics on the table.”
Mr Geissler said: “This would be Boris calling the SNP’s bluff, saying ‘Right, you want it, let’s go, let’s scrap it out’.”
One minister claimed Mr Johnson cannot say no to a second vote for much longer.
They told The Sunday Times: “I don’t see how we keep saying ‘no’ forever.
“The time to do it would be in the middle of economic chaos, not when it’s all looking rosy.”
A second source said: “Boris has said a lot about honouring democratic votes after the EU referendum.
“If people vote for a referendum in Scotland, ultimately they’ll have to have one.”
