Scottish Independence ahead for fourth poll in a row with 51 per cent supporting indyref2

Supreme Court ruling “has done unionism no favours”
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More Scots support independence than want to stay in the Union, four consecutive polls have now found.

The latest YouGov survey for The Times found 47 per cent would vote in favour of independence in another referendum, an increase of four points on a YouGov poll in October, while support for the Union had fallen by three points to 42 per cent. When the undecideds and non-voters are excluded, that puts independence at 53 per cent against 47 per cent for the Union.

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The result comes after three other polls - by Redfield & Wilton Strategies, Ipsos and Find Out Now - also put independence ahead in the wake of the UK Supreme Court decision that Holyrood could not legislate for a fresh independence referendum without approval from Westminster.

Independence supporters held a rally outside the Scottish Parliament on the day the UK Supreme Court ruled that the Scottish Parliament does not have the power to hold a second independence referendum.  Picture: Jane Barlow/PA Wire.Independence supporters held a rally outside the Scottish Parliament on the day the UK Supreme Court ruled that the Scottish Parliament does not have the power to hold a second independence referendum.  Picture: Jane Barlow/PA Wire.
Independence supporters held a rally outside the Scottish Parliament on the day the UK Supreme Court ruled that the Scottish Parliament does not have the power to hold a second independence referendum. Picture: Jane Barlow/PA Wire.

A record 51 per cent of all voters said there should be an independence referendum at some stage over the next five years and at just over half believed the Scottish Parliament should be able to hold a referendum without the agreement of the UK government. Even among those who voted No in 2014, 23 per cent said Holyrood should be able to decide.

Polling expert Professor Sir John Curtice, of Strathclyde University, said the Supreme Court ruling had done unionism no favours and had failed to dent support for indyref2. And he said: “On this evidence, just saying no to another ballot does not look like a viable long-term strategy.”

But he said the poll findings also raised questions about Nicola Sturgeon’s strategy of treating the next UK general election as a “de facto” referendum on independence. The 47 per cent who said they would vote for the SNP or the Greens fell short of the 50 per cent Ms Sturgeon would require to claim a majority mandate.

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SNP depute leader Keith Brown welcomed the poll findings. He said: “It is clear that the people of Scotland want their voice to be heard, and the longer Westminster continues to ignore us, the more support for independence will grow.

"More and more people in Scotland are looking at the utter incompetence of this Tory government, and how the Labour party has abandoned them to adopt a disastrous pro-Brexit policy, and realising that the only way Scotland can escape the long-term damage of Brexit and Westminster control is with independence.

“The people of Scotland will simply not stand for the Westminster parties’ Trump-like democracy denial. The people of Scotland have already voted for a referendum meaning that now is the time for one, and politicians at Westminster must recognise that. It’s clear that Scotland can flourish as an independent country in the European Union, and the people of Scotland deserve to have that choice over their future.”