A FIFTEENTH consecutive poll has found majority support for Scottish independence.
A new survey from Ipsos MORI/STV News found 56% support leaving the Union, while the SNP are on track to win a majority at the May election.
It also revealed about 25% of people are not completely certain about their position on the Union.
More than 1000 adults living in Scotland were asked to rank themselves from complete support for the Union to complete support for independence on a scale of one to 10 – it found a quarter were between three and eight.
The SNP are on track to gain 55% in the constituency vote and 47% in the regional list vote, meaning they would win a majority of seats in the Scottish Parliament.
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The poll shows the party securing 73 seats in the 129-seat Holyrood chamber.
The SNP were also deemed the most trustworthy on a range of issues, with 59% of people saying they trust them a “great deal” or “quite a lot” on education. On the same issue 40% said they trusted Labour and 33% trusted the Tories.
Emily Gray, the managing director of Ipsos MORI Scotland, commented: “The party’s record on key issues such as the economy, education and public services has been much criticised by the Conservatives in recent months.
“However, those messages do not appear to be cutting through with Scottish voters, who trust the SNP much more on the economy, education and the NHS than they do any other political party.”
The Scottish Tories came out second in the survey with 22% of constituency and regional votes, while Scottish Labour were in third place with 14% and 16% respectively.
That would see the Tories winning 27 seats (three fewer than they currently have) and Labour taking 19 (a loss of four).
Both the Greens and the LibDems are on track to secure five MSPs each.
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SNP depute leader Keith Brown was pleased with the results. He said: "People in Scotland have the right to decide their own future rather than being under the control of Westminster governments, led by the likes of Boris Johnson, that they don’t vote for.
"The Covid-19 pandemic has been the greatest public health crisis of our lifetime - but we can see a light at the end of the tunnel, and this SNP government will continue working hard to rebuild and recover from the crisis.
"As we rebuild from this pandemic, it should be Scottish governments, elected by the people of Scotland and with the priorities and interests of Scotland at heart who lead our recovery."
He said the party is "taking absolutely nothing for granted" and will keep "working hard for every single vote".
Brown also had a warning for the Prime Minister, adding: "The pressure on Boris Johnson to respect the democratic rights of voters in Scotland is now immense - no politician can stand in the way of democracy."
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