Fact check: When can scotland become independent

1. Summary of the results

Currently, there is no clear legal path for Scotland to become independent ^[1]. The Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that Scotland cannot hold an independence referendum without UK government consent ^[2]. The most recent attempt to hold a referendum was planned for October 19, 2023, but was blocked by the UK Supreme Court ruling in November 2022 ^[3].

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

Several important contextual points need to be considered:

• The historical context shows that Scotland previously held an independence referendum in 2014, which defeated independence ^[4]
• The Scottish Government has committed £20 million to potentially fund a referendum ^[1]
• Alternative approaches have been suggested:
• Democratic negotiation and round-table talks rather than single referendums ^[4]
• Using the next UK general election as a "de facto" referendum on independence ^{[2] [3]}
• Some suggest following the Catalan approach of holding a referendum using Brexit as a trigger, followed by a unilateral declaration of independence if successful ^[5]

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original question assumes independence is primarily a matter of timing, when in fact it's a complex legal and political issue. Several competing interests are at play:

• The Scottish Government benefits from maintaining the independence narrative, having invested significant resources (£20 million) in the cause ^[1]
• The UK Government benefits from maintaining the status quo through legal control over the referendum process ^[2]
• Some experts suggest that support for "fully-fledged Scottish statehood seems to have lost its appeal" ^[4], indicating a possible disconnect between political rhetoric and public sentiment

The question of Scottish independence remains politically contested with no clear resolution in sight ^[2], and any timeline would depend on significant changes to the current legal and political framework.