SCOTLAND: Another Secession Bid?

Yesterday's election in Britain may result in another bid for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom.

The Scottish National Party (SNP) obliterated its opponents, taking 56 of Scotland's 59 seats in the Westminster parliament. The Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats could muster only one seat each. This marked a spectacular gain from the six seats the SNP won in the last United Kingdom election in 2010. But with the Conservatives securing victory across Britain overall to stay in power, a wide divide has opened up between England and Scotland. The results from Thursday's election immediately put the question of another referendum on Scottish independence at the forefront of minds north and south of the border. Scots voted against independence last September but the SNP, which led the drive, has surged in popularity since then and eclipsed the pro-union Labour Party, which has traditionally counted Scotland as a stronghold in Britain-wide elections.

In the September 2014 secession vote, 55% voted no.