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A Scottish independence supporter holds a Scottish national flag outside the Supreme Court in London, on Nov. 23.

A Scottish independence supporter holds a Scottish national flag outside the Supreme Court in London, on Nov. 23.

Photographer: Hollie Adams/Bloomberg
Politics
UK

Scotland’s New Leader Faces Same Old Rancor Over Independence

The country might want to move on, but Nicola Sturgeon’s successor won’t end the division anytime soon.

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Taking the stage like a rock star to cheering fans, Nicola Sturgeon did what she’d done for almost a decade as leader of Scotland’s independence campaign. She rallied her troops for the next fight.

It was Nov. 23 and the Supreme Court in London had just torpedoed her plan to hold a referendum on breaking away from the rest of the UK. The push for full autonomy in the wake of Britain’s departure from the European Union was now a “movement for democracy,” she told flag-waving supporters outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh. “Let’s get to it, my friends.”

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