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Nicola Sturgeon: Scotland will be independent

Nicola Sturgeon: Scotland will be independent

That she would throw her hat in the ring to stand as SNP leader and become First Minister was a mere formality, what we wanted to know

from Nicola Sturgeon was how much she fancies another referendum.

Anyone who thought for a second the she would knuckle down and wait for a generation to pass before having another go knows nothing of Ms Sturgeon.

She was forged in the fire of Scottish nationalism and these last ten years has been moulded and shaped by arguably Britain’s most able politician Alex Salmond.

Yes, she will work with the Smith commission to bring more powers to Holyrood but make no mistake, her aim is full independence.

She said: “I believe as strongly today as I did last week that independence is the best future for Scotland.

“And I am more convinced than ever that we will become an independent country.”

David Cameron was wrong when he stood outside Downing Street last week and declared, “We have heard the settled will of the Scottish people.”

So are we heading for referendum under First Minister Nicola Sturgeon?

Yes but not right now. Now her priority is to hold the feet of Messrs Cameron, Miliband and Clegg to the candle on their promises made in panic the days before Scotland went to the polls.

But a referendum might be back on the cards sooner than some might think.

“If there is a commitment to a referendum in a manifesto of the SNP at an election and we win that election then that is a mandate for a referendum,” said Ms Sturgeon.

No matter how well they do at the general election next May the SNP cannot win it.

But surely the party whose raison d’etre is Scottish independence will go into the 2016 Holyrood election without a clear commitment to delivering their Holy Grail.

Not a “neverendum” but a “notnowverendum”