Pro-independence majority in Scottish Parliament revives referendum push as Labour suffers sweeping UK defeats

Pro-independence parties have secured a combined majority in the Scottish Parliament, reviving the push for a new referendum on breaking away from the United Kingdom and mounting intense pressure on British Prime Minister Keir Starmer following severe nationwide electoral defeats for his governing Labour Party. The Scottish National Party (SNP) won a fifth consecutive term to lead the semi-autonomous government in Edinburgh. While the SNP did not secure an outright majority, a surge in support for the Scottish Greens—who also back independence—means the two parties together hold more than half of the parliament’s 129 seats, according to Bloomberg. Renewed Mandate for Independence The election results have immediately reignited the constitutional debate in Scotland. SNP leader and First Minister John Swinney had previously stated he would push for a new independence referendum if his party won an absolute majority on its own. As vote counting continued, Swinney clarified that any decision on the matter would be determined once the final composition of the incoming parliament was clear. The Scottish Greens were definitive in their stance following the electoral gains. “We recognise the urgent need for independence, and we have a democratic mandate to pursue this issue,” Ross Greer, co-leader of the Scottish Greens, told BBC Scotland. “The people of this country must have the opportunity to decide in a referendum whether Scotland should be an independent country again, and be able to join the European Union.” The victory guarantees the SNP will extend its governance in Scotland beyond two decades, marking a remarkable turnaround. Swinney assumed leadership of the SNP in 2024 at the height of a reputational crisis, following leadership turmoil and a police investigation into the party’s finances. The party had subsequently suffered a collapse in its parliamentary seats during the UK general election, which Labour swept. Nicola McEwen, Professor of Public Policy at Glasgow University, said the SNP would capitalise on the result. “The SNP will do its utmost to support the cause of independence, because it is rooted in its core,” McEwen stated, adding that she expects a “symbolic vote to show a pro-independence majority in the early days of the new government.” Labour Collapse and Pressure on Starmer The Scottish results compound a broader political crisis for Prime Minister Keir Starmer, whose Labour Party suffered heavy losses across the UK following a series of political setbacks, scandals, and mistakes. Starmer now faces nationalist governments across all the devolved nations: Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland. In a historic shift, Labour lost control of Wales for the first time in a century to the pro-independence party Plaid Cymru. In England, Labour lost hundreds of local council seats to the Reform UK party, led by Nigel Farage. The nationwide collapse prompted Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar to call for Starmer’s resignation. Sarwar stated that the voting outcome in Scotland “reflects the trends of the rest of the UK.” Traditional parties faced a widespread voter backlash. In Scotland, Reform UK won its first parliamentary seats, capitalising on voters turning away from the Conservative Party, which had governed the UK in Westminster for 14 years before being ousted by Labour. The Scottish Conservative leader accused Reform UK of “dividing the votes of independence opponents and handing gains to the SNP.” Prior to the election, Reform and Labour had been fiercely competing to become the largest opposition bloc in the Scottish Parliament. Green Gains and Minority Governance Despite the broader victory for the independence movement, the SNP is expected to form a minority government, making it reliant on the Scottish Greens or other parties to pass legislation. The Greens secured significant victories at the expense of the SNP. The party won a marginal seat in Edinburgh, unseating senior SNP figure Angus Robertson, and also captured the Glasgow constituency previously held by former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon. Sturgeon served as the figurehead of the independence movement for years, demanding a new referendum after the UK voted to leave the European Union—a move Scotland opposed. She marshalled support to end the three-century union with England and Wales but ultimately failed to secure another referendum, as successive Conservative prime ministers in London refused to grant permission. In the 2014 referendum, which followed an SNP majority win in the 2011 elections and an agreement with the UK government, Scotland voted 55% to 45% to remain within the United Kingdom. While recent opinion polls show growing support for secession, holding a legally binding referendum remains unlikely at present without the consent of the UK government.  The post Pro-independence majority in Scottish Parliament revives referendum push as Labour suffers sweeping UK defeats first appeared on Dailynewsegypt.