The UK Supreme Court will deliver its ruling next week on whether Holyrood has the power to hold a second Scottish independence referendum without Westminster’s approval.

A judgement, due at 9.45am on Wednesday, will come just six weeks after the two-day hearing on 11 and 12 October and despite senior judge, Lord Reed, warning that it could be “some months” before a ruling is reached in the case.

He said the arguments heard in court were just the “tip of the iceberg”, with more than 8,000 pages of written material to consider.

The ruling will determine whether a referendum falls within devolved powers, or if the matter remains reserved to Westminster. There is also a chance that there is no ruling either way.

Scotland’s lord advocate, Dorothy Bain KC, referred the case to the Supreme Court due to uncertainty over who was legally allowed to call the poll.

Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s First Minister has told Prime Minister Rishi Sunak that she is determined to hold another referendum on 19 October next year with or without Westminster’s approval.

However, she has insisted that it be done legally, so if the Scottish Government loses the case, the referendum planned for next year would be cancelled and instead the 2024 general election would be a “de facto” referendum.