TheCable

Barely 24 hours after majority of Scottish citizens voted against independence from the United Kingdom, Alex Salmond, the first minister of Scotland, has offered to step down.

Salmond, who would have preferred the result of the referendum to be otherwise, had earlier conceded defeat, saying it was a “triumph for the democratic process”.

Fifty-five per cent of the voters had opposed the independence, while 45 supported it.

Salmond also said he would resign as SNP leader at the party’s next conference in November and then stand down as first minister when the party elects its next leader.

Salmond became the leader of SNP in 1994.

“I am immensely proud of the campaign that Yes Scotland fought and particularly of the 1.6 million voters who rallied to that cause,” he told journalists at his official residence in Bute House, Edinburgh on Friday.

“For me as leader my time is nearly over but for Scotland the campaign continues and the dream shall never die. It has been the privilege of my life to serve Scotland as first minister.

“But, as I said often during the referendum campaign, this is not about me or the SNP. It is much more important than that.

“The position is this. We lost the referendum vote but can still carry the political initiative. More importantly Scotland can still emerge as the real winner.”

With a population of 5.4 million, Scotland has spent 307 years under the United Kingdom.

Northern Ireland, Republic of Wales, and England are the three other countries that make up the United Kingdom .