:00:07. > :00:09.The Scottish Parliament has voted in favour of asking Westminster
:00:10. > :00:11.for the powers to hold a second independence referendum.
:00:12. > :00:17.The vote followed a heated and sometimes angry debate.
:00:18. > :00:21.It ended 69 to 59, with the Greens backing the SNP.
:00:22. > :00:23.But the UK Government says there will be no
:00:24. > :00:25.negotiation until the Brexit process is complete.
:00:26. > :00:34.Our political editor Brian Taylor reports.
:00:35. > :00:38.From Beijing to Bute House, Chinese visitors to Edinburgh top-up their
:00:39. > :00:46.The tourists are well up on the controversy
:00:47. > :00:53.Nicola Sturgeon acknowledges that the argument was robust,
:00:54. > :00:55.and she urged an open and respectful approach.
:00:56. > :01:01.She said she wished the Prime Minister
:01:02. > :01:05.well in pursuing a Brexit deal, but that was matched with a warning.
:01:06. > :01:11.I simply want Scotland to have a choice when the time is right.
:01:12. > :01:14.I hope that the UK Government will respect the will of this Parliament.
:01:15. > :01:18.If it does so, I will enter discussion in good faith and with a
:01:19. > :01:23.However, if it chooses not to do so, I will
:01:24. > :01:24.return to the Parliament following the Easter
:01:25. > :01:26.recess to set up the steps that
:01:27. > :01:28.the Scottish Government will take to progress
:01:29. > :01:32.Ruth Davidson accused the SNP of promoting
:01:33. > :01:35.This is not a reasonable plan of a government, it is the SNP
:01:36. > :01:41.cooking up the same recipe for division.
:01:42. > :01:47.It might have worked once, but it stinks and the
:01:48. > :01:49.people of Scotland are not buying it.
:01:50. > :01:54.The First Minister says that Scotland must have the choice of
:01:55. > :01:57.independence, the Prime Minister says the focus must be on the Brexit
:01:58. > :02:08.She argued firmly against a referendum.
:02:09. > :02:13.85% voted in the last referendum and voted decisively to
:02:14. > :02:17.That is the will of the people and it should
:02:18. > :02:22.My message to the First Minister remains unchanged.
:02:23. > :02:23.We are divided enough, do not
:02:24. > :02:30.The Liberal Democrats say you don't fix Brexit by breaking the UK.
:02:31. > :02:33.The decision to withdraw from Europe broke my heart.
:02:34. > :02:35.As an internationalist, my response could
:02:36. > :02:42.never be to up sticks from the one union of nations I have left.
:02:43. > :02:44.The greens backed the SNP and insisted
:02:45. > :02:45.Brexited changed everything for Scotland.
:02:46. > :02:48.We face being dragged out of the single market with no mandate
:02:49. > :02:55.from the people of the UK or Scotland.
:02:56. > :02:57.The SNP plus Green equals a majority demand for
:02:58. > :03:14.Applause, cheers, but a solemn looking First Minister,
:03:15. > :03:16.Chief among them, convincing the Prime
:03:17. > :03:18.Minister to grant Holyrood the
:03:19. > :03:22.Despite a majority, that will require
:03:23. > :03:23.persuasion, pressure and that will be complex.
:03:24. > :03:38.The vote went as expected and the First Minister has a mandate
:03:39. > :03:39.now to seek permission for a second
:03:40. > :03:43.But Westminster is emphatic that now is not the time.
:03:44. > :03:46.The First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Scottish Secretary David Mundell
:03:47. > :04:12.People need to know what the choices on offer are. And until Brexit is
:04:13. > :04:18.complete, people could not possibly know what they are alternatives
:04:19. > :04:22.were. -- what the alternatives were. That is why we are saying no one now
:04:23. > :04:27.and will not be entering into negotiations until the Brexit
:04:28. > :04:30.process is complete. Now is the time for the Scottish Government to come
:04:31. > :04:34.together with the UK Government, work together to get the best
:04:35. > :04:36.possible deal for the UK and that will mean a full Scotland also, as
:04:37. > :04:40.we leave the EU. So following this evening's vote,
:04:41. > :04:42.the Scottish Government will write to the UK Government to formally
:04:43. > :04:45.request the power to hold an independence referendum
:04:46. > :04:46.between Autumn next year But the Prime Minister, Theresa May,
:04:47. > :04:50.has already made pretty clear So what now for the to
:04:51. > :04:56.sides in this debate? Our political correspondent,
:04:57. > :05:02.Glenn Campbell reports. Near Falkirk, voters have
:05:03. > :05:05.conflicting advice for the Prime Minister on how to deal
:05:06. > :05:07.with a formal request from the First Minister for the power to hold
:05:08. > :05:12.another independence vote. I think we have to wait
:05:13. > :05:16.and see what happens It just seems ludicrous to jump
:05:17. > :05:30.into a decision before we know I don't think she can
:05:31. > :05:34.say no, because, knowing the Scottish psyche,
:05:35. > :05:37.if she says no, people up here are just going to be up in arms
:05:38. > :05:39.and say, OK, what right has she got
:05:40. > :05:42.to tell us what to do? But it doesn't look like Theresa May
:05:43. > :05:45.will feel obliged to bow If the Prime Minister
:05:46. > :05:48.will not budge, the Scottish Government could call
:05:49. > :05:50.a referendum anyway. But that would be open
:05:51. > :05:52.to legal challenge, and the chairman of the yes campaign in 2014
:05:53. > :05:55.thinks it could go wrong. The problem there is,
:05:56. > :05:57.I think, that a lot of the unionist people,
:05:58. > :06:00.a lot of the people that voted no last time, will say stuff this
:06:01. > :06:02.referendum, we are not going to take
:06:03. > :06:06.part, and if there is a massive boycott,
:06:07. > :06:08.the result would be lacking
:06:09. > :06:12.in credibility. What about having an early Holyrood
:06:13. > :06:16.election and making is the I am not going to propose
:06:17. > :06:26.that at this stage. But it is maybe
:06:27. > :06:27.a possibility that the The 2014 referendum
:06:28. > :06:31.took place after the UK and Scottish governments
:06:32. > :06:33.agreed the terms. SNP ministers want
:06:34. > :06:37.to replicate that. But this former Conservative
:06:38. > :06:40.adviser thinks Theresa We think that people do not want
:06:41. > :06:46.a referendum right now, If they can take this to the general
:06:47. > :06:51.election in 2020, and the Scottish election in 2021,
:06:52. > :06:54.they think they could What they have to watch
:06:55. > :07:00.is the narrative of a London, Tory Government saying no to something
:07:01. > :07:02.the Scottish Parliament It could have severe
:07:03. > :07:07.long-term consequences. Might it be in the Prime
:07:08. > :07:09.Minister's entrusts She may not need to get
:07:10. > :07:15.Nicola Sturgeon onside, but it would help her to not have this constant
:07:16. > :07:21.issue in the background as she is trying to conduct
:07:22. > :07:25.those negotiations. One way to avoid that being a major
:07:26. > :07:28.distraction is to have some sort of agreement
:07:29. > :07:30.for a referendum at some point in future, after
:07:31. > :07:35.the negotiations are complete. But, right now, the two
:07:36. > :07:40.sides seem as far Today's vote at Holyrood
:07:41. > :07:47.was held back from last week following the terrorist attack
:07:48. > :07:51.on Westminster, which included the murder of police
:07:52. > :07:53.constable Keith Palmer. Today, Police Scotland deployed
:07:54. > :07:55.officers armed with tasers Senior officers say it's NOT
:07:56. > :08:00.in response to any specific threat. Our Home Affairs Correspondent,
:08:01. > :08:10.Reevel Alderson reports. Firearms officers are to be on duty
:08:11. > :08:13.24 hours a day at Holyrood but Armed response officers
:08:14. > :08:21.with are already on routine patrol around the area and on other
:08:22. > :08:24.iconic locations throughout Scotland to follow a review of security in
:08:25. > :08:31.the wake of the Westminster attack. I'm not suggesting
:08:32. > :08:32.for a minute that we jump straight into
:08:33. > :08:34.arming the police. But rank and file police,
:08:35. > :08:36.meeting in annual conference, heard They asked a series
:08:37. > :08:40.of questions of the Government. ready access to specialist firearms
:08:41. > :08:43.officers and firearms? What impact is the
:08:44. > :08:45.financial cuts having on these specialist officers
:08:46. > :08:50.and their equipment? And when the Government said
:08:51. > :08:53.they expected more for less, What more can an officer
:08:54. > :08:56.give than his life? The conference heard
:08:57. > :09:02.unarmed police were Members called for the equipment
:09:03. > :09:10.they need to protect themselves and the public even if it
:09:11. > :09:13.meant being armed. We know that society in Scotland
:09:14. > :09:16.is maybe not ready for that particular step, but there has to be
:09:17. > :09:18.an education programme taking place, there has to be an understanding
:09:19. > :09:21.that police officers put their lives at risk every day and if we ask
:09:22. > :09:25.the police to protect the politic we have to ask the question -
:09:26. > :09:28.how do we protect the police? Police Scotland now has 600
:09:29. > :09:30.officers, trained to The number of armed
:09:31. > :09:32.response vehicles available almost trebled
:09:33. > :09:38.in the past six months. Senior officers said the security
:09:39. > :09:40.threat was under constant review, based on intelligence
:09:41. > :09:42.here and the wider UK. What you see in Holyrood today
:09:43. > :09:45.is a were you dented measure, operational contingency not
:09:46. > :09:47.in relation to any threat. I can reassure people
:09:48. > :09:52.that we constantly practice our test
:09:53. > :09:55.and response in times of crisis or extreme need
:09:56. > :09:58.and what you have seen over
:09:59. > :10:00.the last few days, is those plans kicking
:10:01. > :10:02.into place, at speed and without any
:10:03. > :10:04.hesitation, right across Scotland. Armed officers in
:10:05. > :10:06.Aberdeen this afternoon. It wasn't a firearms incident,
:10:07. > :10:08.but this may become a more The targeted waiting times
:10:09. > :10:19.for cancer treatments in Scotland have been missed for the fourth year
:10:20. > :10:21.in a row. The Government target is 95%
:10:22. > :10:23.of patients starting Figures published today show that
:10:24. > :10:29.only 87 per cent of patients Only five out of 14 health
:10:30. > :10:34.boards met the target. Average speed cameras
:10:35. > :10:36.are to be installed The Scottish Government says
:10:37. > :10:47.there have been 60 fatal and serious collisions on the route in the last
:10:48. > :10:49.five years, and action is needed. The new system will start
:10:50. > :10:51.operating this Autumn, replacing the existing
:10:52. > :10:53.fixed and mobile cameras. More than 400,000 people
:10:54. > :10:57.in Scotland are now saving into a workplace
:10:58. > :11:00.pension through auto-enrolment. The scheme was introduced five years
:11:01. > :11:04.ago by the UK Government, to encourage more people
:11:05. > :11:07.to save towards their retirement. But some businesses have warned
:11:08. > :11:10.of the rising cost they'll have Well, It's over to Christopher now
:11:11. > :11:32.for tonight and tomorrow's weather. Was cloudy for many of us today and
:11:33. > :11:36.still cloudy now. The rain is fizzling and fading away, so most of
:11:37. > :11:42.us will get dryness tonight, but cloudiness. Reasonably mild, too.
:11:43. > :11:47.The wet weather is fading away and leaving most of us dry and it is a
:11:48. > :11:51.dry store tomorrow, too. But cloudy quite misty and misty and murky and
:11:52. > :11:54.places, particularly across the south-west through Dumfries and
:11:55. > :12:02.Galloway and parts of South Ayrshire and Lanarkshire. It is a dry, and
:12:03. > :12:07.loudest, temperatures 7-9 C: mild, that is cool in the north-east and
:12:08. > :12:12.perhaps the final. Generally though, cloudy, grey and dry. It doesn't
:12:13. > :12:16.stay like that though, because through the course of the morning,
:12:17. > :12:20.in the South west of the rain starts to arrive and move northwards
:12:21. > :12:28.through the course of the day. Bands of rain pushing central belt by
:12:29. > :12:32.lunchtime. Through -- across the UK as a whole it is connected to an
:12:33. > :12:36.area of low pressure and rain is coming up to the north of England
:12:37. > :12:41.through Wales on the south-west. The Midlands and down to the Saudis,
:12:42. > :12:42.dry, cloudy, temperatures in the mid teens and it will be cold tomorrow,
:12:43. > :12:51.but it will do well. -- but it will teens and it will be cold tomorrow,
:12:52. > :12:55.be wet. Into Wednesday night, the wet weather holds on and slowly
:12:56. > :13:02.eases off to leave things reasonably dry for a time. Was that rain
:13:03. > :13:09.clears, there is more on its way from the south. Thursday, cloudy and
:13:10. > :13:13.damp to start, but it should clear away. At some point during the
:13:14. > :13:17.afternoon, drying out with sunshine coming through at times and in the
:13:18. > :13:20.sunshine, pleasantly warm temperatures 15-16 C.
:13:21. > :13:23.Our next update is during Breakfast at 6.25am tomorrow morning.
:13:24. > :13:30.But, from everyone on the late team here in Glasgow
:13:31. > :13:34.One man had the vision to take inspiration from the ancient