2014 Scottish independence referendumA referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom was held in Scotland on 18 September 2014. The referendum question was, "Should Scotland be an independent country?", which voters answered with "Yes" or "No". The "No" side won with 2,001,926 (55.3%) voting against independence and 1,617,989 (44.7%) voting in favour. The turnout of 84.6% was the highest recorded for an election or referendum in the United Kingdom since the January 1910 general election, which was held before the introduction of universal suffrage.
Scottish AssemblyThe Scottish Assembly was a proposed legislature for Scotland that would have devolved a set list of powers from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Labour Government led the Scotland Act 1978 through Westminster which provided for the establishment of the Scottish Assembly. Although the majority of those who voted at the referendum on 1 March 1979 voted in favour of the Act, the provisions were not put in place due to the additional requirement that 40% of the total electorate also vote in favour.
Politics of the United KingdomThe politics of the United Kingdom functions within a constitutional monarchy where executive power is delegated by legislation and social conventions to a unitary parliamentary democracy. From this a hereditary monarch, currently Charles III, serves as head of state while the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, currently Rishi Sunak, serves as the elected head of government. The United Kingdom's parliamentary system sees executive power exercised by the British government, appointed on behalf of the monarch.
Scottish independenceScottish independence (Neo-eisimeileachd na h-Alba; Scots unthirldom) is the notion of Scotland as a sovereign state, independent from the United Kingdom, and refers to the political movement that is campaigning to bring it about. Scotland was an independent kingdom through the Middle Ages, and fought wars to maintain its independence from England. The two kingdoms were joined in personal union in 1603 when the Scottish King James VI became James I of England, and the two kingdoms united politically into one kingdom called Great Britain in 1707.
Scottish National PartyThe Scottish National Party (SNP; Scots National Pairty, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ˈphaːrɣʃtji ˈn̪ɣaːʃən̪ɣt̪ə nə ˈhal̪ɣapə) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence or secession from the United Kingdom and for Scotland's membership of the European Union, with a platform based on civic nationalism. The SNP is currently the largest political party in Scotland, where it has the most seats in the Scottish Parliament and 44 out of the 59 Scottish seats in the House of Commons in Westminster.
Ed MilibandEdward Samuel Miliband (born 24 December 1969) is a British politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Climate Change and Net Zero since 2021. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Doncaster North since 2005. Miliband was Leader of the Labour Party and Leader of the Opposition between 2010 and 2015. Alongside his brother, Foreign Secretary David Miliband, he served in the Cabinet from 2007 to 2010 under Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
Minority governmentA minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in the legislature. It is sworn into office, with or without the formal support of other parties, enabling a government to be formed. Under such a government, legislation can only be passed with the support or consent of enough other members of the legislature to provide a majority, encouraging multi-partisanship.
Gordon BrownJames Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a Scottish politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer under Tony Blair from 1997 to 2007. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Dunfermline East from 1983 to 2005 and, following boundary changes, Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath from 2005 to 2015. Brown is the most recent Labour Party politician as well as the most recent Scottish politician to hold the office of prime minister.
Commonwealth realmA Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state that has Charles III as its monarch and head of state. Charles succeeded his mother, Elizabeth II, as monarch of the Commonwealth realms immediately upon her death on 8 September 2022. All the realms are equal with and independent of the others, though one person, resident in the United Kingdom, acts as monarch of each. there are 15 Commonwealth realms: Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, The Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, and the United Kingdom.
ScotlandScotland (Scotland; Alba ˈal̪ɣapə) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, Scotland is the second-largest country in the United Kingdom, and accounted for 8% of the population in 2019. Scotland's only land border is a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, the North Sea to the northeast and east, and the Irish Sea to the south.
