May to stress importance of union in meeting with Sturgeon
Updated : 14:45
Prime Minister Theresa May was to meet Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and press the case for the four nations of the United Kingdom staying together.
The talks in Scotland were set to take place a day before the Scottish Parliament was expected to back a second independence referendum and at the start of the week when Article 50 will be triggered, starting the process of Brexit.
May is expected to say that she intends to build a more united nation outside of the European Union when she triggers the clause of the clause on Wednesday to start formal divorce proceedings with the bloc.
Her visit to Scotland is part of the tour of the four isles to gauge opinion on Brexit and comes a day before Holyrood is expected to pass an SNP-led motion for a second independence referendum.
May rejected outright the case for a second vote, but Sturgeon wants Scots to have the option to make a judgement on the terms of any Brexit deal.
In a speech at the Department for International Development’s base in East Kilbride, May said Britain was a “big country that will never let down, or turn our back on, those in need".
She stressed her outward ambitions for the country and her faith in the union as the government began negotiations that will lead us towards a new partnership with Europe”.
"And I want to make it absolutely clear as we move through this process that this is not, in any sense, the moment that Britain steps back from the world. Indeed, we are going to take this opportunity to forge a more global Britain.
"The closest friend and ally with Europe, but also a country that looks beyond Europe to build relationships with old friends and new allies alike."
"As Britain leaves the European Union, and we forge a new role for ourselves in the world, the strength and stability of our Union will become even more important."
Later in the day she will have a meeting with the first minister of Scotland and also meet with with Police Scotland to to discuss counter-terrorism following the Westminster terror attack last week.