WESTMINSTER will hand Scotland the power to give 16 and 17-year-olds the vote this week as ministers publish highly-anticipated draft legislation designed to deliver the "vow" on extra devolution.
Powers over the franchise have been fast-tracked to ensure there is enough time to allow 100,000 or so Scottish teenagers to take part in next year's Holyrood elections.
The announcement will be made by the Scottish Secretary Alistair Carmichael when he meets young people at a college in Edinburgh later today.
A Section 30 order is expected to be laid tomorrow, to transfer the power from Westminster to Holyrood.
But a bitter row has already erupted ahead of the publication on Thursday of draft clauses on a range of historic new powers for Scotland agreed by the cross-party Smith Commission.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has warned that they mark a "missed opportunity" and has accused MPs of duping Scots.
Danny Alexander, the Highland MP and Chief Secretary to the Treasury, called on the SNP not to "run down" the vow.
He said Scots could be in "no doubt, this is the dream of Home Rule made real - and made real whilst retaining the benefits of being a full part of our United Kingdom."
The Smith Commission proposed giving Holyrood control over parts of the benefits system, areas like elections and equality, as well as large parts of income tax.
But a new poll at the weekend showed that Scots have no appetite for tax rises.
The Survation poll for the Mail on Sunday found just seven per cent personally willing to pay more income tax, while 28 per cent wanted to pay less and 43 per cent were happy to pay the same.
The poll also found 35 per cent thought that the benefits bill should be cut, while 27 per cent backed a more generous system and 24 per cent supported the status quo.
John Curtice, professor of politics at Strathclyde University, said that the poll findings suggested that "it will be quite difficult for the Scottish parties to use the new tax powers in either direction."
The new draft clauses are expected to deliver every recommendation made by the Smith Commission.
Deputy First Minister John Swinney said that they would "shine a light" on what is being offered to the Scottish people and had to mark the beginning not the end of the process.
For his part Mr Carmichael suggested said that the handover of powers represented "'the completion of Scotland's devolution process'.
Coalition sources said that they were "not going to say forever and ever and a day because things can evolve. For example, issues like fracking had probably not even been heard of in 1999. But this is a really fundamental change. It is the culmination of an agreement between all the political parties, including the SNP, and it is built to last".
Mr Carmichael is expected to launch the draft clauses at an event in Scotland with stakeholders on Thursday.
It is thought that Scotland Office minister David Mundell could present the plans to the Commons.
Miss Sturgeon has warned that the Smith Commission's proposals 'don't go nearly far enough' and the UK Government will still control around 70 per cent of tax-raising powers and 85 per cent of welfare spending.
The First Minister has also called for many of the proposed powers to be immediately given to MSPs, including over control of air passenger duty.
All the pro-Union have agreed to implement the draft Bill.
Former First Minister Alex Salmond has said that "home rule" is not the SNP's goal.
The Survation poll also showed that 40 per cent of Scots agree that Scotland should be given every power except defence and foreign affairs, while another 35 per cent disagreed.
Only 13 per cent of those who voted No in the referendum backed Mr Salmond's call for Home Rule compared to 78 per cent of those who voted Yes.
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