Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon on Monday pledged to step up efforts to secure independence for her country, even if she loses a crucial court case on whether she can legally hold a referendum.

Sturgeon is seeking a ruling from the Supreme Court in London on whether her administration has the authority to hold another plebiscite without the British government’s consent. She said that, should the case fail, she would take the argument to Scottish voters during the next UK general election, due in 2024.

In her closing address to the Scottish National party’s first in-person annual conference since the Covid-19 outbreak, held in Aberdeen, the first minister said she would “never ever give up on Scottish democracy” and vowed her party could make an optimistic case for independence.