国际英语资讯:Spotlight: No-deal Brexit prospect could bring Scottish independence vote forward_时事

国际英语资讯:Spotlight: No-deal Brexit prospect could bring Scottish independence vote forward

Scottish National Party politician Gillian Martin, who represents Aberdeenshire East at Holyrood, said she had detected a shift in mood among her constituents.

Martin said in an earlier media interview: "Everyone I know knows someone who's changed their mind from No to Yes. Of course, not everyone is champing at the bit to have another referendum - people are weary of the amount of times they've been asked to go to the ballot box in the past few years.

"There's still a nervousness about independence. But Aberdeenshire is a bellwether. If we could get past 50 percent here, there would be a landslide across Scotland."

HARDEST HIT CITY

It is believed that a no-deal Brexit would give the Scots the hard choice between Britain's internal market and that of the European Union, leaving Scottish business which has traditionally focused on servicing the oil and gas industry in an awkward position.

In Aberdeen, one of Europe's largest operational ports has been preparing itself for a no-deal Brexit scenario by carrying on an ambitious expansion project.

Michelle Handforth, Chief Executive of Aberdeen Harbor Board, has said that the port's 350-million-pound (430 million U.S. dollars) expansion plan, the biggest marine construction project underway in Britain, will continue.

" In this way the port is preparing itself for all eventualities, including Brexit," she said.

An earlier research examining for the first time the potential impact of Brexit on cities and towns has found Aberdeen could be the "hardest hit" by higher trade costs with the European Union, though no British city will escape its effects.