Scotland will push for independence referendum before May 2021: Sturgeon

Scotland should hold an independence referendum before the current Scottish parliamentary term ends in May 2021, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Wednesday.

"A choice between Brexit and a future for Scotland as an independent European nation should be offered in the lifetime of this parliament," Sturgeon told Holyrood, Scotland's devolved parliament.

She said she would prepare legislation before the end of 2019 for this to happen.

Scotland, part of the United Kingdom for more than 300 years, rejected independence by 10 percentage points in a 2014 referendum.