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Independence referendum
13/02/2012
The First Minister Alex Salmond welcomed the Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore to St Andrew's House this morning to continue discussions on the holding of the independence referendum.
After the meeting had concluded, the First Minister said:
"I met with the Secretary of State for Scotland this morning, and I will meet with the Prime Minister on Thursday, taking forward discussions with a view to getting agreement on the manner in which the independence referendum will be held.
"This morning's meeting saw some progress, but it also identified the key points of disagreement: one or two questions, and the issue of 16 and 17 year olds voting.
"It was useful to get clarification that the Westminster Government is willing to listen to its consultation on these matters, because the Scottish Government most certainly is. We are favourable to 16 and 17 year olds getting to vote, and we will listen to our consultation.
"I hope that once the consultation process is completed, that will enable us to come to agreement. The voice of the people is key in getting a resolution.
"On the question of the section 30, we have no difficulty with the process. Our difficulty is with the conditionality, the strings attached. If the argument is to offer a section 30 to enable the Scottish Parliament to have a direct question on independence, which is beyond legal challenge that would tend to support the view of the Electoral Reform Society that the section 30 should be offered without strings attached.
"Hopefully, the voice of the people will prevail upon the politicians to find common ground on these matters and the objective is to have the referendum within the timescale we have indicated.
"There are different views on the timescales, but no serious argument and the meeting was also helpful on the role of the Electoral Commission. We have specified a role for the Commission, specifically designed to allay concerns people may have had. The role of the Commission will be as it is for a referendum held by Westminster - the government proposes, the commission advises, and parliament decides."