Scottish election 2021: Political party leaders clash in BBC debate ahead of May 6 election

• Video report by ITV News Scotland Correspondent Peter Smith

Political party leaders had their first clash in a televised debate ahead of Scotland's parliamentary election.

Scottish independence will not be on the ballot paper on May 6, but it dominated the debate hosted by the BBC on Tuesday evening.

First Minister and Leader of the Scottish National Party Nicola Sturgeon is asking for a mandate in the 2021 election. If her party wins a majority, she will push for another independence referendum.

Scottish Conservatives leader Douglas Ross and Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar argued against a referendum.

Ross appealed to the public to support his party if they did not want a referendum, while Sarwar told Ross to "Grow up. Have you not noticed we're in the midst of a pandemic?"

The topic that united everyone was that Scottish politics is too divided, with reference made to the bitter psychodrama between Sturgeon and former FM Alex Salmond.

And there were pleas to rebuild from this pandemic as a fairer, more representative nation.

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