The new Panelbase poll, commissioned by The Times, found that 52% of people in Scotland support indyref2.

It also revealed a majority of Scots (50%) also want a referendum to be held in the next parliamentary term at Holyrood, with 43% opposed to that idea.

The poll puts the independence vote on 49%, with 7% of voters undecided. With the don’t knows removed, that’s a 52% to 48% majority.

Pollsters also asked people on how they feel the pandemic was being handled, with 61% of people saying they thought First Minister Nicola Sturgeon had done a good job, compared with 64% of people thinking Boris Johnson had done a bad job.

Nearly half (42%) of Scots think their country would have handled the coronavirus crisis better if they had been independent, nearly double the 23% who disagree. More than half (53%) think the decisions should be made at Holt, with just 14% saying they should be made at Westminster. 

Just 22% of Scottish voters think Johnson has done a good job on coronavirus, compared with 61% who think Sturgeon has handled the crisis well.

It also found that the SNP is on course for a huge landslide in May's Holyrood elections, gaining an extra seven seats, which is considered to be a mandate to hold indyref2.

The poll shows Brexit has led to the rise in Yes votes, with 53% of those asked saying they would vote to rejoin the EU, which is close to the number who would vote for independence. Just 31% say they would not. In England, voters oppose rejoining by a margin of 42% to 40%.

Only 22% of Scots think they would be better off outside the UK, half the number who think they would be worse off, which means three in 10 Scots are prepared to vote for Yes, even if there are believed to be economic disadvantages.

It follows a Survation poll from earlier this week that put the Yes vote at 51% and showed a big Yes lead among women, with 55% now backing independence. 

READ MORE: New Survation poll is NINETEENTH to show Scots want independence

It comes as the SNP unveils a plan to hold indyref2 – Boris Johnson will need to take legal action if he wants to stop Scots voters having their say on the constitution.

The proposal, revealed exclusively by The National today, comes ahead of the SNP’s virtual National Assembly on Sunday, where members will meet to discuss “the tactics and strategy on the route from here to independence day”.

REVEALED: SNP unveils plan to hold indyref2 – even if Boris Johnson says no

The Scottish Government was working on legislation to allow a second independence referendum last year, though it was suspended on March 16, 2020 as “a result of the need to deploy as many civil servants as possible to work on Scotland’s response to the pandemic”.

But in last September’s Programme for Government, Nicola Sturgeon said independence was vital to reversing Brexit and allowing Scotland to rejoin its European allies.

She told MSPs: “That is why, before the end of this Parliament, we will publish a draft bill, setting out the proposed terms and timing of an independence referendum, as well as the proposed question that people will be asked in that referendum. And then at next year’s election, we will make the case for Scotland to become an independent country, and seek a clear endorsement of Scotland’s right to choose our own future.”

The roadmap says this bill would be enacted “if an SNP Scottish Government is re-elected with a majority to do so (either as a result of gaining an overall majority or if it had such a majority as a result of support from another pro-independence party)”.

It makes clear that any referendum “must be beyond legal challenge to ensure legitimacy and acceptance at home and abroad”.