A SECRET list of donors to the anti-independence group Scotland in Union is been widely circulated on social media after being inadvertently released by the Electoral Commission.

It shows around 170 individuals gave just over £650,000 to the cross-party Unionist group between 2015 and mid-2017.

The donors include two earls, business people, significant Tory donors, and the landed gentry.

The election watchdog released the material by mistake after failing to redact a freedom of information response properly when it put it on its website on April 17.

READ MORE: Watchdog error reveals Unionist campaign's secret donors

A simple “cut and paste” procedure revealed the names of donors, how much they gave and when they gave it.

Although the Electoral Commission removed the file from its site on Wednesday after being alerted to the problem, an archived version is still available through Google.

The donor list is similar to a Scotland in Union (SIU) spreadsheet which was leaked to a series of Nationalist websites at the New Year.

An SIU spokesperson said: “We are still awaiting an explanation from the Electoral Commission and we are consulting our lawyers.”

READ MORE: Watchdog error reveals Unionist campaign's secret donors

An Electoral Commission spokesperson said: “A Freedom of Information response published on the Commission’s website had a technical issue with the application of redactions which enabled access to personal information. "We regret this error, are investigating as a matter of urgency and will provide further information at the earliest opportunity.”