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A Difficult Choice? Inside the UK/Outside the EU vs. Inside the EU/Outside the UK

17th January 2024

Brexit means that the choice facing voters in another referendum on independence would be fundamentally different from that in 2014. In that referendum, a vote to remain part of the Union was also a vote to remain a member of the EU. Now, given that the Scottish National Party says that an independent Scotland would […]


Mr Yousaf’s Conference Challenge

13th October 2023

The SNP leader, Humza Yousaf, faces a difficult party conference in Aberdeen, where his party will round off the autumn party conference season next week. Over the last couple of months the level of support for the SNP at a Westminster election has stood on average at just 36%, the lowest level it has been […]


Another Look at Attitudes to the Monarchy

4th May 2023

The coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in Westminster Abbey on Saturday has unsurprisingly generated a considerable amount of polling on attitudes towards the monarchy in recent week. Much of that has been Britain-wide. However, there has also been some polling of Scotland alone that allows us to examine attitudes north of the […]


Searching for Straws in The Gale: The Impact of the SNP’s Financial Woes

27th April 2023

The arrest on 5 April of Peter Murrell, until recently the Chief Executive of the SNP, in connection with allegations about the possible misuse of funds collected by the SNP in 2017 to promote independence has given rise to much speculation about the possible impact of the story on the fortunes of the SNP (see, […]


A Broken Link? Support for Independence and the SNP

11th April 2023

One of the key developments in Scottish electoral politics over the last decade has been a strengthening of the relationship between constitutional preference and party choice. Those who support independence have come overwhelmingly to support the SNP, while those who are opposed have become disinclined to do so. According to the Scottish Social Attitudes survey, […]


An Uncertain Contest: Polling on the SNP Leadership Election

14th March 2023

SNP members are now voting for the next leader of the SNP. Following a tough interrogation by Sky News’ Political Editor, Beth Rigby last night, tonight the contenders will debate each other in front of a live audience on BBC1 Scotland. The polls suggest there is everything to play for, at least so far as […]


Could Labour Profit From Nicola Sturgeon’s Resignation?

16th February 2023

Scottish Labour meet in Edinburgh this weekend in better heart than for a long time. The party outpolled the Conservatives in last May’s local elections, the first time it had done so in a Scotland-wide ballot since 2016. Almost every poll conducted since the beginning of last year has suggested that the party has now […]


Does the Future of Gaelic Lie in Young People’s Hands?

28th December 2022

Scotland is currently preparing to enjoy Hogmanay, one of the distinctive highlights of the country’s cultural and social calendar. We thought we would mark the occasion by reprising a piece of ScotCen research unveiled during the year that looked at attitudes towards another distinctive feature of Scottish life and culture – the Gaelic language. The […]


A Tale of Two Halves? The Supreme Court Judgement and Attitudes towards Independence

14th December 2022

The Supreme Court judgement that the Scottish Parliament does not have the legal authority to hold a referendum on independence was widely welcomed by unionist politicians. However, so far at least, it seems to have undermined rather than underpinned the foundations of public support for the Union. Four polls of people’s vote intentions in a […]


The COVID-19 Pandemic and Support for Independence

22nd November 2022

One remarkable development during the COVID-19 pandemic was a marked if temporary increase in the level of support for independence. Every published opinion poll conducted between June 2020 and January 2021 had Yes ahead of No when people were asked how they would vote in response to the question that appeared on the referendum ballot […]


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