Scottish independence

A blue border town sign along a road with foliage.

Concerns about an English border loom over Scottish elections

Borders

Political heat is rising in the Scottish borderlands as pro-independence parties lean toward getting the majority in Thursday’s Scottish parliamentary elections.

A woman in a red coat poses triumphantly in front of a group of happy adults.

After UK elections, could Johnson face a ‘disunited’ kingdom?

Elections
The British Union Flag, right, and a Scottish Saltire flag fly above the Scottish Office in Whitehall, with the London Eye wheel seen behind, in London.

Scotland’s leader wants another independence vote before Brexit

Global Politics
Nicola Sturgeon, leader of the Scottish National Party, reacts to election results at a counting center in Glasgow, Scotland, on May 8, 2015.

‘This is possibly our last vote and we’re going out to vote SNP’

Global Politics
Scottish National Party leader Nicola Sturgeon display the SNP's election manifesto in Edinburgh, Scotland, on April 21, 2015.

The UK’s likely election kingmaker doesn’t even want to be part of the UK

Global Politics
Scottish supporters from the "No" campaign celebrate as they hold up a Union flag in the city of Edinburgh.

Alex Salmond’s resignation is a ‘sea change’ in Scottish politics

Global Politics

The atmosphere around Scotland’s independence vote was electric, and BBC radio host and Scottish native Rhod Sharp says he could feel it all the way from New England, where he watched the referendum and its historic aftermath unfold.

A supporter from the "Yes" Campaign cries into his knees as he sits in George Square in Glasgow, Scotland September 19, 2014. The "Yes" Campaign bid to win independence for Scotland, failed.

Scottish independence may have lost, but Britain may be changed forever

Global Politics

Many supporters of the “Yes” campaign were in tears after a decisive loss in Scotland’s independence vote. But London had to promise a raft of new local powers to keep Scotland in the UK, and those promises may change the nature of the British union for Northern Ireland, Wales and England, too.

Scottish teenager James Kane in Glasgow will exercise his right to vote in the upcoming Scottish independence referendum on September 18th.

Why vote for Scotland’s independence? A Scottish teen explains his reasons

Global Politics

Sixteen-year-old James Kane from Oban, Scotland, was undecided until this week on whether to vote for independence for Scotland. He’s not your usual teen. He interviewed leaders of many of Scotland’s political parties before making up his mind. But he is typical in that teens from 16 on up will get to vote in this special referendum on the country’s future.

A "No" supporter yells from a moving car while taking his message through the streets of downtown Montreal during Quebec's 1995 referendum on secession from Canada.

The Scottish independence movement learned from Quebec’s failed votes for separation

Global Politics

For separatists in Quebec, a couple of failed tries at an independence referendum have led to what some there call “neverendum.” The Scottish independence movement learned a few key lessons from Canada’s experience. And now Quebec separatists might learn from Scotland if the “Yes” campaign wins on Thursday.

"No" signs recently appeared in an empty shop next to the headquarters of Oban's "Yes" campaign.

The small town of Oban debates whether to take a risk on Scottish independence

Global Politics

Scotland’s independence referendum takes place next week and the polls show a surprisingly narrow race. In the fishing town of Oban, business owners are divided over whether to gamble the present for a chance that an independent Scotland will be stronger and better.