Poll shows three-quarters of Scotland and UK reject separate Scotland
The vast majority of people want Scotland to remain as part of the UK, according to a BBC poll
A new TNS-BRMB Poll for the BBC Politics Show published today today shows nearly three quarters of people in both Scotland and the whole UK do not want to see Scotland separate from the rest of the UK.
Scottish Secretary Michael Moore said this is the latest confirmation that Scots do not want to break away from the UK and that is why the First Minister will not hold a straightforward referendum on Scotland’s future in the UK. The two-question ballot proposed by the Scottish Government was recently branded “unfeasible” by one of the world’s foremost experts on constitutional referendums.
The poll shows support for breaking up the UK at 28 per cent, down since the last TNS-BRMB poll published by the Herald on 5 September. It means independence is the least favoured of all options put to the public, which also included further powers for the Scottish Parliament or maintaining the status quo.
The Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore said:
“This is simply the latest confirmation that Scots don’t want to break away from the UK and that is why the First Minister can’t hold a referendum now and wants to find lots of questions to ask in a few years time.
“The Scottish Government tactic of evading the difficult questions is clearly faltering, especially since support has dropped since they launched their independence campaign.
“The positive reasons to stay in the UK are absolutely clear, from being part of one of the world¿s foremost and most stable economies to having Westminster spend over £20 billion over and above the Scottish budget in Scotland each year. The choice between the two is obvious and Scots are making it.
“After another week in which business leaders highlighted the damaging effect of uncertainty on business decisions, the Scottish Government must get on with the referendum and focus on the economy and jobs.”
The Secretary of State appeared on the BB Politics Show on 6 November to discuss the poll - http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b016p4xc