Scotland must be allowed to hold another referendum on its place inside the United Kingdom following the crushing victory of the nationalists in the election, leader Nicola Sturgeon said on Friday.
ADVERTISEMENTThe Scottish National Party (SNP), which strongly opposes Brexit, is set for an overwhelming victory in Scotland, setting the scene for a second independence vote.
According to an exit poll, SNP is currently projected to win 55 of the 59 seats in Scotland.
Secession was rejected by 55% to 45% in a 2014 independence referendum but nationalists argue Brexit means a new poll is needed.
Boris Johnson said Thursday that it looked like the Conservatives had a mandate to get Brexit done after a strong performance in the UK election.
But Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said Johnson did not have a mandate to take Scotland out of the EU.
"We don't want Brexit," Sturgeon said. "Boris Johnson may have a mandate to take England out of the European Union, he emphatically does not have a mandate to take Scotland out of the European Union."
"There is a mandate now to offer the people of Scotland the choice over our own future," Sturgeon told Sky News.
"There is a clear desire and endorsement for the notion that Scotland should not be landed with a Boris Johnson government and ripped out of Europe against our own will.
The party has advocated for a second referendum throughout the campaign.
Another Scottish independence referendum would damage Scotland and the United Kingdom even if Scots have overwhelmingly voted for the nationalists that favour such a poll, British minister Michael Gove said on Thursday.
"I don't believe that another independence referendum is inevitable, quite the opposite," Gove told ITV.
"I don't believe that a second independence referendum would be right for Scotland or right for the United Kingdom."
Euronews digital correspondent Orlando Crowcoft was reporting live from East Dunbartonshire constituency, where Liberal Democrat leader Jo Swinson lost her seat to the SNP.
READ MORE: UK election 2019: Looks like we have a mandate to get Brexit done, says Boris Johnson