A FORMER Scottish Labour minister has said independence is “inevitable” if the UK elects another Tory government, and he may well vote Yes himself.

Malcolm Chisholm, who was health minister in the early years of devolution, said Brexit and the state of the Conservatives had given “a great impetus” to the independence movement.

He said: “Faced with Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt, who’s not much better, and Brexit and the possibility of a no-deal, a lot of people are thinking ‘What is the point of staying connected to that?’”

The SNP called it a "significant intervention" from a respected figure.

It follows a new poll showing support for independence at 49 per cent.

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Mr Chisholm told the Edinburgh Evening News: “I would go as far as to say if we have continuing Conservative governments independence will become inevitable.

“I might in future vote for independence but it would totally depend on what the situation was and what the alternatives on offer were in terms of the UK.

“If we had continuing Conservative government I think Scotland would vote for independence and I think I would as well - but that’s quite a big ‘if’.”

The former Edinburgh North and Leith MSP and former MP, who served at Holyrood from 1999 to 2016, also said devolution had caused "almost inevitable momentum towards more power" for the Scottish Parliament.

It meant the "only two futures for Scotland" were either greater powers or independence.

He said: “The only question is whether it stops at some sort of enhanced devolution or devo max or whether it goes towards independence. Those are the only two futures for Scotland now really.

“I think independence is likely anyway because of the way people under 50 vote, but I think a Corbyn kind of government that was actually achieving what it set out to achieve would certainly delay that process - whereas if we have a Conservative government elected - whoever is leader - at the next election, I would say independence is pretty inevitable.”

Mr Chisholm, who resigned from his second Scottish cabinet role as communities minister in 2006 after siding with the SNP to oppose Trident, said a radical Labour government could dampen enthusiasm for independence, but perhaps only for a while.

He said: “I’m a big supporter of what Labour is trying to do at UK level - though I’ve been critical of the approach to Brexit.

“Some people have moved towards support for independence because they think we could do more on the environmental climate change front if we were independent.

“But if you had a government in London being radical not just on climate change but in the wider economy people might think there was a continuing role for Westminster.

“Whereas, faced with Boris Johnson or Jeremy Hunt, who’s not much better, and Brexit and the possibility if a no-deal Brexit, a lot of people are thinking ‘What is the point of staying connected to that?’”

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SNP Depute Leader Keith Brown said: “This is a significant intervention from a figure respected across the political divide.

“Just like Malcolm Chisholm, people across Scotland are looking at the Brexit mess and the prospect of more Tory governments with despair.

“No wonder latest polling puts a referendum on a knife-edge – even before Brexit hits.

“Independence will give Scotland control over our own future, rather than being faced with the prospect of endless Tory governments we didn’t vote for.”

The Panelbase poll for the Sunday Times prompted pollster Professor Sir John Curtice to comment at the weekend: “It seems that the days when unionists could claim with confidence that Scots do not want another independence referendum any time soon may have come to an end.”