SNP's independence argument always 'falls apart' says Wallace

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Scotland’s First Minister has continued to push for a second referendum on independence but Boris Johnson has insisted the result from the vote in 2014 by 55 percent to 45 percent to remain part of the UK, must be honoured. This has not deterred Ms Sturgeon, who wants to hold a second vote on the matter if the SNP is able to secure a majority in the Scottish elections on May 6. But in a huge hammer blow, a new poll undertaken by Savanta ComRes for The Scotsman which interviewed 1,002 adults aged 16 or over online from February 4-9 has suggested support for another vote is quickly slipping away.

The most poll found support for independence has dropped below 50 percent when those who voted “don’t know” are included for the first time since December.

Those voting “Yes” in the event of a second referendum drops to just 47 percent, with 42 percent voting “No” and 10 percent undecided.

When the “don’t knows” are excluded, support for independence in a second referendum is down four points from the last Savanta ComRes poll in January to 53 percent.

George Galloway, who last week signalled his intent after his All for Unity party was registered with the Electoral Commission, has torn apart the SNP, claiming the new poll shows the party is back to where it was when defeated in the independence referendum of 2014.

The veteran MP told Express.co.uk: “The tide is turning on independence.

“This is the fourth consecutive fall, but the biggest fall in support for independence.

“If you include ‘don’t knows’, that support is at 47 percent and that will soon slip to 45 percent, which is what the SNP got in the independence referendum in 2014.”

Mr Galloway added: “All this huffing and puffing has got them nowhere.

“Six years ago in the referendum, the ‘don’t knows’ broke by a 9:1 margin in favour of remaining in the UK.

“If you add the vast majority of the ‘don’t knows’, which were 10 percent, to our result, then you get more or less the result you got in 2014.”

The new poll also revealed widening divisions in the SNP could be attributed to this fall in support for independence, with significantly more Scots now believing the ruling party is more fractured than ever as the crucial Scottish elections approach.

Just 42 percent believed the SNP are united, down by eight points against the survey from January and five points below December’s figures.

Just under half (45 percent) of those quizzed believe the SNP is divided, an increase of six points compared with January and eight points when compared to December.

Mr Galloway warned the SNP has been left in “tatters”, meaning “the end is near for Nicola Sturgeon”.

He told Express.co.uk: “The SNP are the real opposition to themselves and are literally falling apart.

“There are so many scandals that one struggles to remember, and that has left them in tatters.

“They are tearing themselves to pieces, and each day brings a new development.

“Jim Sillars, the former deputy leader of the SNP and a highly respected figure, has called for a revolt from within the SNP to overthrow the current leadership.

“He said if that doesn’t happen, then he can’t vote for the SNP.”

Mr Galloway added: “The end is near for Nicola Sturgeon.

“The party is an open revolt and big names are calling on her to be removed.

“You can be sure that her days are numbered.”

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