New poll shows a majority of Scots opposes independence from UK

First Minister: Alex Salmond will speak at 'Yes' campaign launch.SWNS

A majority of Scots opposes independence from the United Kingdom, a new poll has shown.

The survey, released by former Chancellor Alistair Darling ahead of Friday’s launch of the pro-independence campaign, found that a third of voters supported separation.

Fifty-seven per cent of respondents said they would prefer Scotland to stay in the Union while 33% wanted the nation to go its own way. A further ten per cent were undecided. The poll saw 1,004 Scottish adults asked: "Do you agree that Scotland should become a country independent from the rest of the UK?"

Labour’s Mr Darling, who is spearheading the pro-Union campaign, told The Herald that "the numbers on independence haven’t really shifted".

He added: "Even after winning two Scottish election victories, raising a war-chest of millions and deploying the full resources of the Scottish Government, Alex Salmond has failed to convince Scots they should leave the UK."

His comments came before the launch of the campaign to win the October 2014 referendum.

Yes Scotland, a cross-party grouping, said its aim was to convince voters that "the people who care most about Scotland are the people that should be running Scotland".

First Minister Alex Salmond spoke at the launch on Friday at Cineworld cinema in Edinburgh. Also in attendance were former Labour MP Dennis Canavan and a number of celebrity guests.

The spokesman said critics would be left in no doubt that the campaign is about more than just the SNP.

But Scottish Green party co-convener Patrick Harvie said the campaign must be a genuine cross-party bid for independence rather than the SNP's "bland vision of politics-as-usual".

He said: "Most Greens support independence but there are many others who have concerns about the SNP's middle-of-the-road strategy."

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