Nicola Sturgeon to address pro-independence rally in Glasgow

Nicola Sturgeon will step up demands for a second referendum on Scottish independence when she addresses a rally in central Glasgow on Saturday.

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon during an General Election rally for her party in Leith, Edinburgh. PA Photo. Picture date: Friday November 1, 2019. See PA story POLITICS Election. Photo credit should read: Tom Eden/PA Wire

The First Minister is the headline speaker at an event being held in George Square, with several thousand spectators expected to attend.

Scottish Greens leader Patrick Harvie is among the other speakers scheduled to appear at the rally, organised by a tabloid newspaper, as all parties prepare for the start of the official general election campaign next week.

Ms Sturgeon is expected to say that an IndyRef2 must take place in 2020 to give Scots the choice of creating a fairer nation, or remaining in a UK intent on leaving the EU.

The prospect of another independence referendum has become a major campaign issue in recent days following comments made by Jeremy Corbyn.

The UK Labour leader, while insisting his party would not seek any formal coalition with the SNP if it failed to win a majority in December, has nonetheless refused to rule out granting an IndyRef2 if a formal request is made by the Scottish Government.

Speaking at an election rally in Leith on Friday, the SNP leader said: “I don’t think Jeremy Corbyn is under any illusions though about my position around independence, a referendum and the transfer of power.

“I’ve got many disagreements with Jeremy Corbyn, but UK Labour’s position seems to me to be a statement of democracy rather than a denial of democracy which is the position of the Scottish Labour party.”