Labour could hold onto second place in May's Holyrood vote but still suffer its 'worst ever' result, a top polling expert has suggested. The new report, penned by Professor John Curtice of Strathclyde University, also suggested that in certain regions supporters of independence "might be wise" to cast their second ballot for a smaller pro-independence party like the Greens or RISE. Curtice said voter attitudes to Scottish independence were now "closely aligned" to their party vote, which was "bad news" for Labour due to the high amount of its former supporters who backed a Yes vote in 2014. He added that the party are now "more or less confined to fishing for votes in the waters of unionist voters - and finding itself in competition with the Conservatives". But Curtice pointed out that polling averages showed Conservative support in Scotland had only risen by 1% since 2011, to 15%, while Labour's average level of support was 20%, down from 32% in 2011. He added: "In short, the speculation about second place is more an indication of Labour's difficulties than of Conservative progress." However, a new survey by Panelbase for the Sunday Times indicated the two parties were nearly neck-and-neck, with Scottish Labour ahead of its Tory rivals by one point in the constituency vote but behind by one point in the list vote. Curtice also said the SNP's poll dominance in the constituency vote - sitting at an average of 54% - would see party win an overall majority in May with constituency seats alone. But he said such a dominant performance in the first vote could see the SNP winning only two List seats in the second vote under Holyrood's Additional Member System (AMS). This would present SNP supporters with a "strategic dilemma", said Curtice, as to how best to ensure as many pro-independence MSPs were elected as possible. Curtice said: "Nationalist supporters might be wise on the second ballot to vote tactically for a different party, such as the Greens or the left-wing RISE grouping, both of which also support independence. "That way their vote might contribute to the election of another independence supporting MSP rather than apparently being wasted." The report also suggested that if the Scottish Greens won a List seat in every region they could "usurp" the Liberal Democrats as Holyrood's fourth largest party, and that the Lib Dems showed "very little sign of any advance" on their 8% vote share in 2011. The report, titled 'The 2016 Scottish Election Briefing', was commissioned by the Electoral Reform Society and is available on their website. Responding to the report, a spokesperson for Scottish Labour said: "The big issue in this election is how each of the parties will use the new powers of the Scottish Parliament to stop the cuts and invest in our economy. "Labour's three priorities are to tax the richest 1% more, invest in education to grow the economy and stop the cuts to our public services. Faced with the choice between using the powers of the Scottish Parliament to invest in the future or carrying on with the SNP's cuts to schools, Labour will use the powers." The spokesperson added: "Ruth Davidson's plan to charge university students £6,000 for graduating is a hidden tax on aspiration. Despite all the outlandish photos people know Ruth Davidson leads the same old nasty Tory Party." An SNP spokesperson said: "Only by giving both votes to the SNP can people be sure of returning Nicola Sturgeon as First Minister, leading a re-elected SNP Government in a position to take forward our manifesto plans. "While we welcome other parties' backing for independence, fracturing the pro-independence vote merely risks playing into the hands of those who oppose a fully self-governing Scotland." The co-convener of the Scottish Greens Patrick Harvie said he'd spoken to voters who felt "a bit taken for granted" by the 'Both Votes SNP' campaign, adding: "Even on issues which many SNP members care about, from progressive taxation to standing up to the fracking companies, it seems that the SNP's leadership do need to be pushed. Greens have a great track record of bringing pressure to bear, but doing so in constructive ways which make a real difference, instead of just pretending that everything the SNP do is bad, as the other opposition parties do." Harvie also warned against any future independence campaign becoming "an SNP-only cause" instead of a more open platform. Cat Boyd, for left-wing grouping RISE, claimed the report made "a compelling case for pro-independence voters to back RISE with their second votes", adding: "I'd rather people voted for RISE on the second ballot than let unionist parties in by the back door. Labour and the Tories have done nothing to earn the respect of ordinary people, nor can they represent the aspirations of millions of voters." The Scottish Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have also been approached for comment.  Download: The STV News app is Scotland's favourite and is available for iPhone from the App store and for Android from Google Play. Download it today and continue to enjoy STV News wherever you are.