There is one year to go until the independence referendum and three polls yesterday confirmed the prevailing trend, now in evidence for months, namely that the pro-independence camp is trailing the pro-UK camp by a significant margin.

Pro-UK support stood at between 52% and 59% while pro-independence backers made up 27-32% of the cohort.

There were also signs that other long-standing trends were holding, with Ipsos MORI finding that men were still much more likely than women to vote yes. The only major discernible change was in the number of undecided voters, with the proportion significantly down on a TNS poll earlier this month.

Polls so far out from an important vote are notoriously unreliable of course, something that Better Together have been just as keen to stress as Yes Scotland. Yet even if voters do continue to oppose independence as the vote approaches, politicians in the No camp understand that the pro-UK vote should not be mistaken for love of the status quo; rather, the figures hide a significant level of support for enhanced devolution, short of independence.

It is in that context that the deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg yesterday stressed that the Liberal Democrats would hand more powers to Scotland if the SNP's bid for independence is defeated in next year's referendum. "A Scottish decision to remain within the UK family can and must give way to a new settlement for this nation," he said.

Quite apart from the referendum, more powers for the Scottish Parliament would be highly desirable. Within the context of the forthcoming vote, the politics of Mr Clegg's pledge are clear, that many of those voting against independence will want to be reassured that in doing so, they are taking a step towards enhanced devolution instead.

That explains the timing of his remarks, but for the pro-UK parties there is also a danger in being too firm in their commitment to more powers. The obvious rejoinder is: well what, then? Having seen how demands for detail on the SNP's independence plans have mired Yes Scotland in controversy, that is something the pro-UK campaigners will hope to avoid.

More information is certainly required in the debate as a whole, a fact that was much in evidence yesterday during the Holyrood debate marking one year to go before the independence referendum.

Alex Salmond sought to strike a statesmanlike tone, saying support for independence was a "common-sense position" and predicting voters would flock to the independence banner. Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats responded with fervour from the opposing perspective, with Johann Lamont declaring that a No vote would allow politicians to "start dealing with the real challenges of life in modern Scotland".

All in all it was not a bad day for the Scottish Parliament, but there was a telling irony in watching Scotland's politicians talking among themselves, recycling old arguments, as a key milestone was passed on the road to the referendum. Ultimately, the exchanges did little to add to voters' understanding of the key questions and the symbolic vote was meaningless.

Answers are promised when the SNP's white paper on independence is launched in November. It may take until then before there is renewed vigour in this oddly static debate and in the polls.