Scottish leader vows to step up independence push post-Brexit

Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Nicola Sturgeon demanded a referendum on independence Friday, as Britain prepared to leave the European Union in a moment of "profound sadness."

In a speech in Edinburgh, the leader of the pro-independence SNP said Britain's departure from the EU was a "pivotal moment" for the U.K. and Scotland.

"There will be a material change in the circumstances that prevailed in 2014," she said, referring to the last referendum on Scottish independence.

Sturgeon continues to claim that her party has the political support to hold another referendum, pointing to three previous U.K. parliament elections where the SNP won the majority in Scotland.

Members of the devolved Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh this week voted to back her calls for a fresh vote, which she wants to be held as early as this year.

But U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has rejected SNP requests to formally transfer powers from London to Edinburgh for the referendum to be held.

In response, Scottish newspapers marked Brexit Friday with pro-European front pages, reflecting the majority vote north of the border with England to remain in the EU in the 2016 referendum.

The Daily Record wrote: "Short-changed: Isolated, worse off, weaker and divided."

Pro-independence daily, The National, on the other hand, wrote: "Dear Europe. We didn't vote for this. Remember to... Leave a light on for Scotland."

Sturgeon committed to persuading more Scots to back independence, as a new poll suggested a slim majority were now in favor of the country ending its three-centuries union with the U.K.

"Our party campaign is therefore ready to ramp up," she said, pledging to double the SNP campaign budget this year on advertising and campaigning.

"We will continue to do all that we can to secure a referendum this year and that's for a reason: Brexit has put Scotland on the wrong road.

"The further down that road we go, the longer it will take to get back on the right road," she added, also telling that Scotland was "on the cusp" of going its own way.

In the 2016 Brexit referendum, 62% of Scottish voters opted to remain in the EU, while across Britain 52% voted for Brexit.