A NEW poll has found 57 per cent of Scots would vote to "remain" in the UK if a referendum was held tomorrow.
The poll, which was commissioned by pro-UK campaign group Scotland in Union, asked respondents: “Should Scotland remain part of the United Kingdom or leave the United Kingdom?"
It found 57% of people said they would vote to remain, with 43% opting to leave, once 'don't knows' are excluded.
If 'don't knows' are included, 49% would vote to remain and 37% to leave.
The SNP said voters would "see right through this desperate attempt to rig the question", which is normally asked on the same Yes or No basis as in 2014.
The issue of a second referendum is set to loom large during the Holyrood election on May 6.
The SNP and Greens both say a pro-independence majority would provide a mandate to push for another vote.
The latest poll was carried out by Survation between March 9 and 12 and was based on 1,011 respondents aged over 16.
It also revealed that most Scots think recovery from Covid is the most important issue facing the country today.
In contrast, only 8% said independence is one of the top three issues facing Scotland.
Asked to choose up to three of the most important issues currently facing Scotland, 53% selected ‘Covid-19 recovery’, 48% ‘NHS and social care’ and 46% ‘economy and jobs’ – with just 8% choosing ‘constitutional affairs and independence’.
Scotland In Union chief executive Pamela Nash said: “This poll shows that a majority of people in Scotland want to remain part of the UK.
“This confirms the recent trend in polls, with the successful UK vaccination programme and UK-wide support for jobs and businesses reminding us that we are stronger together.
“The SNP should stop prioritising division ahead of the issues that really matter to people.
“A staggering 92% of Scots do not think that independence is one of the top three issues facing Scotland.
“The SNP should focus on what really matters to people – Covid recovery, NHS and social care, and jobs. Instead it has chosen to use parliamentary time to debate separation, which shows how out of touch the nationalists are.
“The SNP’s negative vision to divide Scotland is being rejected and the people of Scotland want politicians to bring our country together and build a successful future for everyone.”
SNP depute leader Keith Brown said: "This election comes down to a stark choice – who should decide the country’s future, and lead our recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic. Should it be the people of Scotland or Boris Johnson?
"Voters will see right through this desperate attempt to rig the question in a deliberate bid to confuse independence with Brexit.
"If the people of Scotland back a referendum at the coming election then that is what will happen - inventing fresh barriers to put in the way of voters getting a say simply will not stand.
"Scotland's future must be firmly in Scotland's hands - not Boris Johnson's."
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel