Large parts of the UK, including Wales, London and Manchester, will vote in local and devolved elections on Thursday 6 May. Much international attention, however, will be on the results of the Scottish parliament election, with the pro-independence Scottish National Party, which has been in government since 2007, on course to win a fourth term. The SNP and its allies insist that if they win a majority, they will have an unarguable mandate for a second vote on independence from the UK, following a 2014 referendum in which voters opposed separation by 55 to 45 per cent. The UK government, led by the Conservatives under Prime Minister Boris Johnson, rejects that argument, setting up a defining political conflict for the coming years.
Scotland: SNP on course to win vote, but by how much matters msn.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from msn.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
UK PM Boris Johnson is facing three reviews into his conduct, including one by the Electoral Commission into the funding of refurbishments to the prime ministerial flat.
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Boris Johnson faces growing calls to explain how he funded Downing Street flat refurb funding amid stench of sleaze claims
There are growing calls for Boris Johnson to explain how the refurbishment of his Downing Street flat was paid for.
The prime minister considered a secret plan to get Tory donors to foot the bill, according to his former adviser Dominic Cummings.
Number 10 insists no laws or ministerial codes were broken - while the PM said the public don t give a monkeys about who pays for what.