Chickenpox Forces Scottish Referendum Talks to Be Cancelled

Talks about a referendum on independence for Scotland due to take place on Friday have been cancelled because the British minister in charge of challenging the move to break up the UK is ill.

Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond was to meet the London-based government's Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore in Edinburgh for the first talks about the terms and timing of a referendum.

But Moore has failed to recover from chickenpox in time.

"The proposed meeting between the Secretary of State and the First Minister today has been cancelled due to illness. It will be rescheduled shortly," said a spokesman for Moore's office.

Salmond has been pushing for a referendum since his Scottish National Party (SNP) last year won the first majority in the Edinburgh parliament since its formation in 1999, following devolution from the United Kingdom in 1998.

The SNP wants to hold the vote in autumn 2014, putting Salmond at loggerheads with British Prime Minister David Cameron who wants the referendum to take place as soon as possible.

Salmond told the Scottish parliament on Wednesday that the question he wanted on the referendum ballot paper was: "Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country?"