Nicola Sturgeon has announced she will ask for powers to call a new Scottish independence referendum by the end of the year.

The Scottish first minister said she wanted another national poll to decide the country's future to take place in 2020.

She claimed it would be "unsustainable" for the UK government to deny the chance for Scots to vote again on splitting from the rest of the country.

Image: Scots voted to remain in the UK by 55.3% to 44.7%

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has previously said more referendums would cause "total national discord".

Scotland voted 55.3% against independence in the referendum in 2014, while 44.7% voted in support.


Ms Sturgeon was rallying party supporters at the SNP annual conference in Aberdeen on Tuesday.

She claimed the party was "winning the case for independence" and laid out her favoured timeline for another referendum.

Scotland is big, strong and rich enough to become independent, she added.

And turning her sights on the 2021 Holyrood elections, Ms Sturgeon said a win for the SNP was proof the country wants independence.

Image: Scotland is strong and rich enough to become independent, says the first minister

She also threw down the gauntlet to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to make it happen, telling him if he wants her party's support in a coalition after the next election a referendum was the only way to win it.

"If you don't respect Scotland's right to choose... don't even bother picking up the phone," she said.

Mr Corbyn said in March he would be "absolutely fine" with another independence referendum.

He later backtracked and blamed "mischievous reporting".

Image: Jeremy Corbyn backtracked on his support for another poll

Mr Johnson, who appointed himself minister for the union when he became PM in July, used his speech at Tory conference earlier this month to lampoon the SNP's referendum plans.

He accused them of trying to "turn the whole of 2020 - which should be a great year for this country - into the chaos and cacophony of two more referendum": One on Scottish independence, and another on Brexit.

"Can you imagine? Another 3 years of this?" he asked.

And during the Tory leadership race over the summer, Mr Johnson denied Scottish independence would be more likely after Brexit.

"I think we can cement and intensify the union," he insisted.

Image: Boris Johnson says he wants to 'intensify' the union

Ms Sturgeon also used her conference to announce policies including £27m of funding to encourage people to walk and cycle more, supporting more than 200 projects across Scotland.

And she pledged the next SNP government would introduce child care over the school holidays for primary school pupils from the poorest backgrounds.