Nicola Sturgeon has not made a proper request to the UK Authorities to carry an independence referendum since successful the Scottish election final 12 months.
The First Minister launched a brand new drive for a breakaway vote final week.
She has mentioned the referendum ought to happen in October subsequent 12 months if authorized approval to stage it may be secured.
However the UK Authorities confirmed the Scottish Authorities has not lodged a request for a Part 30 Order, which might switch the required powers.
The authorized mechanism was negotiated between Alex Salmond and David Cameron in 2012 – two years earlier than the 2014 referendum.
A supply mentioned: “The final time a request was submitted was in 2019. There was nothing because the 2021 Scottish Parliament election and nothing because the First Minister’s press convention.”
When the Sunday Mail requested the Scottish Authorities why it had not but sought an order, a spokesman refused to reply and as an alternative directed us to a video of a press convention.
Sturgeon has accused opposition events of “operating scared” of the details on independence.
The Scottish Authorities printed a paper on Tuesday evaluating the UK with international locations which the FM claimed
are “wealthier, fairer and happier”.
She mentioned: “The Tories and Labour have fully failed to interact with that time as a result of they know it's true and since they will see how threadbare the case for continued Westminster rule over Scotland has grow to be.
“They merely don't have any reply, so as an alternative of participating in that debate they like to interact within the politics of deflection, speaking about problems with course of when on the problems of substance the sands are shifting beneath their ft.
“The folks of Scotland have secured a cast-iron democratic mandate to determine their very own future – and neither Boris Johnson nor some other UK PM has the fitting to dam that mandate.”
In her press convention, Sturgeon mentioned she stood prepared “to debate the phrases of” a Part 30 at any time with Johnson. However she didn’t deal with the very fact no formal request for one had been made since 2019.
The UK Authorities mentioned: “Now shouldn't be the time to be speaking about one other referendum.
Folks throughout Scotland rightly need and anticipate to see each of their governments working along with a relentless deal with the problems that matter to them, their households and communities.
“Meaning tackling the price of dwelling, defending our power safety, main the response in opposition to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and rising our economic system.”
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