LONDON (Sputnik) — Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Wednesday that she is "reasonably confident" that Scottish voters would support the idea of London's membership in the European Union, during the forthcoming Brexit referendum.
Earlier this year, Sturgeon, who is also the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP), has already said that if the United Kingdom decides to leave the 28-nation bloc, Scotland will be able to hold a second referendum on independence.
"At this stage I am reasonably confident that there will a significant vote in Scotland to stay in the European Union," Sturgeon said at a press conference.
Report from my press conference this morning in Bute House — Nicola Sturgeon outlines plans for SNP government https://t.co/p76tLgHKji
— Nicola Sturgeon (@NicolaSturgeon) 11 мая 2016 г.
UK citizens are set to vote on June 23 in a referendum on the country's EU membership, after Prime Minister David Cameron and the leaders of the 27 European Union member states reached a deal in February to grant Great Britain a special status within the bloc. SNP, which has come to dominate Scottish politics since the country had been given a parliament in 1999, believes that Scotland benefits from EU membership.
In 2014, Scotland held a referendum on the independence from the United Kingdom, in which over 55 percent of the electorate rejected secession.
