Scottish independence: Boris Johnson says no to second independence vote

Another vote on whether or not Scotland should stay part of the United Kingdom, has been formally rejected by the UK government.

The request for a second independence referendum, or indyref2, came from Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

She said she wanted to hold a referendum (vote) later this year.

In December she made a formal request for the UK government to give powers to the Scottish Parliament which would mean that any referendum would be legal.

But Prime Minister Boris Johnson has now written to her and said although he has "carefully considered and noted" her arguments, a vote would "continue the political stagnation Scotland has seen for the past decade".

He has also highlighted how in the past Nicola Sturgeon had said the vote held in 2014 would be "once in a generation".

Ms Sturgeon tweeted that the Tories - or Conservative party - were attempting to "deny democracy".

What happened with the referendum in 2014?

In 2014 a referendum was held giving people in Scotland the chance to vote on whether or not they wanted to be part of the United Kingdom (England, Wales and Northern Ireland).

They could answer yes or no to the question: "Should Scotland be an independent country?"

Voters decided they didn't want it to be a separate country, with the result being a 55% to 45% split in favour of staying in the UK.