Scotland does not have the power to hold a new referendum on independence without the say-so of the British Parliament, the UK Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday.

"The Scottish Parliament does not have the power to legislate for a referendum on Scottish independence," Robert Reed, the president of the court, said.

The Supreme Court made the ruling on the grounds that such a referendum would be of critical importance not only to Scotland but the United Kingdom as a whole.

Reed said that the court was "not asked, and cannot be asked, to express a view on the political question of whether Scotland should become an independent country.''

The court's verdict represents a blow to the semi-autonomous Scottish government's wish to hold a referendum next October on whether the country should break away from the United Kingdom.  

The Conservative government in London has so far refused to approve such a vote, referring to a 2014 referendum in which Scottish voters rejected independence.

However, Wednesday's ruling is not likely to put an end to the Scottish independence drive, which has been since fueled by differences over the UK's exit from the European Union. A clear majority of people in Scotland voted to remain within the bloc in 2016.

UK obviously not a 'voluntary partnership': Sturgeon

Scotland's first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, said on Twitter she was "disappointed" by the ruling but accepted it.  

"A law that doesn't allow Scotland to choose our own future without (UK Parliament) consent exposes as myth any notion of the UK as a voluntary partnership," she wrote. 

Sturgeon has already promised that defeat at the Supreme Court would mean her Scottish Nationalist Party (SNP) would make the next UK-wide election, scheduled for 2024, a "de facto" independence referendum.

Supporters of Scottish independence plan to rally outside the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh and at other sites later on Wednesday.

Surveys indicate that Scots are about evenly split on the issue and have also shown that most voters do not want another referendum in the near future. However, a majority of Scottish parliamentarians support independence.

Scots make up some 5.5 million of the overall 68 million population of the United Kingdom, which binds together England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The country has had its own parliament and government since 1999. It makes its own policies on public health, education and some other matters.

tj/sms (Reuters, AP)