THE promotion of Britishness in the run-up to and during the Olympics will not help the anti-independence campaign, Alex Salmond insisted yesterday.

Asked if he was fearful that the sea of Union flags and the exhortations to take pride in being British might give a boost to the Better Together campaign, the First Minister pointed to a poll this week, which put independence slightly ahead of Scotland remaining in the UK, and added: "So, I suppose the answer to your question is: no I'm not."

Mr Salmond, who spoke to reporters after launching Scotland House – a bid to boost business investment on the back of London 2012 – denied that a successful Team GB would be bad for the SNP's bid for independence, insisting people did not see it in those terms.

He said: "Frankly, if I felt the fate of Scottish independence turned upon how many gold medals we won in either the Commonwealth Games or the Olympic Games, I would be downgrading the role of persuasion and argument."

Asked if the London Olympics had instilled in him personally a sense of Britishness, the First Minister smiled and replied: "We're very happy to compete in Team GB and will be even happier to compete as part of Team Scotland."

He praised the 77 Scottish Olympians and Paralympians within Team GB and insisted: "We're very proud to be here, to be part of the team and will give every support to our Scottish Olympians and Paralympians and indeed the UK team as well."

Mr Salmond emphasised how the Olympics were providing a "good trial run" for the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. He added the Games would be enjoyed around the world and quipped: "You're not speaking to Mitt Romney now."