Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon has slammed the idea of ​​changes to Britain's Referendum Act, which would destroy the hopes of those in favor of Scottish independence, calling it a move by the "desperate" and people "who are afraid of losing".

But if the independence referendum cannot be held next year, as the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) previously announced, she will raise the next general elections in Great Britain to a "de facto referendum" on the independence of Scotland.

The Sunday Times newspaper reported that the plan being considered by the government in London would mean that more than half of the entire Scottish electorate, rather than the current majority, would have to vote for Scotland to leave the UK before secession would be allowed.

The paper said the plan would require evidence that at least 60 percent of voters want another independence referendum for more than a year before the British government even considers it.

And if the referendum does go ahead, then at least half of all Scottish voters would have to vote to leave the UK – rather than a majority of those who voted, as was the case in the 2014 independence referendum and the 2016 Brexit vote .

Sturgeon wrote in a tweet yesterday: "Only those who fear defeat feel the need to change the democratic rules. This desperate proposal is proof that the case for independence is winning."

Sturgeon has already made it clear that she is determined to hold a second independence vote in October 2023, but to do so would require the UK Supreme Court to rule that such a vote could be held without the consent of the state parliament.

MIA