Scotland First Minister Sturgeon in Brussels
Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon | EPA/Geoffrey Van Der Hasselt / Pool

First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon has demanded “immediate guarantees” that EU nationals living in Scotland will be allowed to stay after Brexit.

In a letter to David Cameron and the five candidates bidding to replace him as prime minister, Sturgeon said it was “imperative” the U.K. government respected the rights of Scotland’s 173,000 EU citizens.

The request comes ahead of a meeting with consuls-general of EU member states and diplomats at her official residence in Edinburgh on Tuesday, according to a BBC report.

She said: “Scotland voted overwhelmingly to stay in Europe, yet citizens of EU countries who live, work and contribute to our country are understandably anxious and uncertain about what the U.K. referendum result means for them and their families.

“People from EU countries are an important part of Scotland’s future. I am therefore seeking immediate guarantees from the prime minister, and all Conservative leadership candidates, that the residency status and the other existing rights of the 173,000 EU nationals living in Scotland will remain unchanged, now or in the future.

“This is a commitment that can and should be made and enforced now,” Sturgeon said.

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