Electoral Commission would want to review Yes/No question ahead of indyref2

Saltire and yes sign - Image credit: Holyrood

The Electoral Commission would want to review the question put to the public in any future independence referendum, it has said.

In a submission to the Scottish Government on the Referendums (Scotland) Bill, the elections watchdog has said it would want to consider the wording of the question, even if it was the same one used in 2014.

Ahead of the 2014 independence referendum, the Electoral Commission agreed to the use of the a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ response to the question ‘Should Scotland be an independent country?’

But two years later it decided against a Yes/No question for the EU referendum, due to concerns that the question was not balanced.

Instead, the 2016 Brexit vote used the ‘Leave’ or ‘Remain’ options.

In its submission, the Electoral Commission wrote that it “must be required to assess any referendum question proposed in legislation, and set the Commission’s views before the Scottish Parliament, regardless of whether the Commission has previously published views on the question proposed”.

The commission also suggested other changes be made to the draft legislation, including tighter rules on campaign spending and higher fines for breaches of such rules.

It also set out a suggested timetable for organising another independence vote, which would require a 12-week assessment period and a requirement to publish the legislation at least six months before any voting would take place.

The Scottish Government is not obliged to accept the commission’s suggestions.