Nicola Sturgeon has accused Boris Johnson of “trying to rig the rules” of indyref2 amid reports the Prime Minister wants to allow Scots living in England a vote.
The First Minister hit back on Twitter at suggestions that UK Government Ministers are prepared to give 800,000 Scots living in England and a further 50,000 exiles in Wales what could be a decisive say in an independence vote.
The SNP leader took heart in the apparent concession from Tory Ministers that a vote would happen but she added: “Maybe they should just argue their case on its merits and allow everyone who lives in Scotland to decide #democracy”.
The riposte came after reports that Cabinet Ministers want to put the UK government on the front foot in preparation for an expected autumn push for Indyref2 by making Ruth Davidson the leader of the pro-Union campaign.
The former Scottish Conservative leader is expect to be appointed to the House of Lords and there are calls for her to be made Boris Johnson’s cabinet secretary for the constitution.
Responsibility just now is divided between Johnson as Minister for the Union and Scot Michael Gove who is the Cabinet Office Minister.
Giving a referendum vote to Scots living in England was debated ahead of the 2014 referendum but dropped.
However, who is eligible to vote in another referendum is likely to be the source of hard bargaining between the two governments if negotiations on granting another Section 30 order to stage a vote proceed.
Polling guru Professor Sir John Curtice has said that the inclusion of Scots in the rest of the UK could swing the vote towards the Union so long as the pro-independence side did not command more than 54 per cent of the vote in Scotland.
