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in support, although around two-thirds of the German popu- lation remains in favor of EU membership.
Even in the United Kingdom, a backlash may be occur- ring. In April 2017, bolstered by a substantial lead over the opposition in approval polls, Prime Minister Theresa May called for a general election to be held in June, in order to consolidate her party’s parliamentary majority and give her the political mandate she would need to see her through the Brexit negotiation process. But, in a stunning turn of events, May’s gambit backfired. Her party lost its majority and will now be forced to lead a minority government. The jury is still out as to whether this government will last for the full five-
year mandate without needing to call another election, and amid increasing condemnation from her own party, May’s continued tenure as prime minister is far from certain. The implications of this for the UK, particularly regarding a “hard Brexit” or a “soft Brexit,” have yet to be determined. Nonetheless, the kindling has been lit. Brexit sets a prece- dent for other countries to consider leaving the EU and for those with rising nationalist sentiment to close their borders to immigrants and trade agreements. It remains to be seen whether the many implications for the British people of the UK’s departure from the bloc will serve as a deterrent—or an encouragement—to those who would follow in its footsteps.
On June 27, 2017, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon told the Scottish parliament, “We will not seek to introduce the legislation for an independence referendum immediate- ly.” Instead, she believes that another referendum on independence might not take place until 2021, after the current legislative term has ended.
  SCOTLAND
YOU TAKE THE HIGH ROAD ...
When a majority of the Scottish electorate voted to remain part of the United Kingdom in 2014, many believed that the specter of the breakup of the union between Scotland and Great Britain, first estab- lished in 1707, had been definitively laid to rest. But then came Brexit. While the majority vote overall in the UK was in favor of leaving the European Union, almost two-thirds of Scots voted to remain.
“Based on a very clear result in Scotland, if we were to be removed from the EU, it would be against the will of our people. That would be democratically unacceptable,” said Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in an address to the Scottish Parliament in the wake of the Brexit vote.
Dismayed that what it sees as English national- ism could force Scotland out of the EU, Sturgeon’s Scottish National Party (SNP), which has held power in the nation since 2007, demanded a rerun of the 2014 independence referendum.
In order to have any chance at what is called “Indy Ref 2,” SNP needed a mandate, which it was hoping to gain in the UK general election in June. Ahead of the election, First Minister Sturgeon said that the vote would not decide in and of itself whether Scotland would become independent but
that “a vote for the SNP will reinforce the right of
the Scottish Parliament to decide when the nation should be given a choice on its future,” making sure that Scotland would always be able to determine its own path.
The election, however, did not go well for the SNP, which lost 21 of 56 seats. While it still holds a ma- jority in the Scottish Parliament, Deputy First Minis- ter John Swinney commented, “We have to acknowl- edge that the question of a second independence was a significant motivator of votes against the SNP in this election.”
Even if the SNP got its wish for Indy Ref 2, ques- tions remain about Scotland’s ability to go it alone. With a £15 billion public debt, thanks in part to the collapse in oil prices, and higher per capita public spending than the rest of the UK, the nation may
be fiscally unsound. What’s more, chief European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas recently said that Scotland would not be granted automatic access to the EU if it split from the rest of the UK and would effectively have to join the back of the queue for membership.
As with all things Brexit, the future for this proud, spirited land is unclear. It seems that the choice is to stake a new and independent claim with the EU or stay with its partner of 300 years for at least a bit longer. Which is the high road and which the low? No one seems quite sure.
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