No deal Brexit 'a big significant risk': Scotland's Sturgeon

There is still a big risk of Britain crashing out of the European Union without reaching a deal with the bloc, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said on Wednesday.

“It is very difficult at this point to see how (British Prime Minister) Boris Johnson manages to strike a deal with the European Union that will satisfy the European Union and also be capable of a majority in the House of Commons,” Sturgeon said on a trip to Berlin to build ties with the German government.

“(This) is why a no deal Brexit cannot be ruled out and remains a big significant risk,” she added.

Sturgeon said her Scottish National Party (SNP) would do everything it could to avert Brexit “and certainly avert a no deal Brexit, and we hope Scotland will remain part of the European Union for many years to come”.

But she added that an extension was preferable to a no-deal exit. She said a general election in Britain in the coming months was inevitable or as close to inevitable as possible.

“I don't think the SNP will be in a formal coalition with other parties after an election, but we will seek to work collaboratively with other parties firstly to try to make sure the Conservatives don't return to government and also to seek a reversal of the Brexit decision so that the UK can remain in the EU,” she added.