Concern over wording of referendum

THE Scottish Government’s proposed question for the independence referendum is “biased” towards a yes vote, according to an MPs committee.

The House of Commons Scottish Affairs Committee has concluded that the question “Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country?” is “leading” and “biased toward towards a Yes answer”.

In a report released today, the committee has called on all parties to come together to draft a “clear and neutral” question, which can then be put through “exhaustive” testing by the Electoral Commission.

Scottish Government Cabinet Secretary for Parliamentary Business, Bruce Crawford, said: “The Scottish Government’s proposed referendum question is straightforward and fair, as acknowledged by Scottish Tory leader Ruth Davidson, and the ‘agree’ formulation was also used in Labour’s 1997 devolution referendum.”