David Cameron has agreed to meet Scotland's First Minister Alex Salmond in a bid to resolve a row over an independence referendum, the British Prime Minister's spokesman said Sunday. The spokesman for Cameron's Downing Street office said: "The PM has made it clear he is happy to meet Alex Salmond and arrangements for that will be made in the coming days."
Salmond's spokesman, who had earlier accused Cameron of being "uncomfortable" and of trying to avoid holding talks with the Scottish leader, hailed the move as "real progress".
Cameron has said he wants a referendum to take place as soon as possible, putting him at odds with Salmond's Scottish National Party (SNP) which is eyeing a vote in 2014. Michael Moore, the British minister for Scotland in the United Kingdom's London-based government, has asked for a meeting with Salmond to discuss the clash over the vote which could break up a 305-year-old union.
The Downing Street spokesman said the prime minister hoped Salmond would meet Moore on Thursday, the day after the semi-autonomous Scottish government is due to publish a consultation document on the referendum.
Salmond's spokesman said the Scottish leader was happy to meet with Moore, but the meeting would have to come after the "detailed" consultation paper was published.
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