A Press and Journal-commissioned poll has revealed support for Scottish independence has dipped across the north and north-east over the last year.
The survey conducted after last week’s intervention from Chancellor George Osborne on currency found that 65% of respondents intend to vote “no” in September’s referendum.
Just 17% of 500 people questioned said they will be voting “yes”, while 18% said they were still undecided.
Support for the Union across the Press and Journal’s circulation area, including Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Moray, Inverness and the Highlands and islands, has increased from 50% since spring last year. The 2013 results had the percentage backing Scotland going it alone at 27% – 10% higher than the February 2014 figure.
The regional results paint a different picture to national polling, which has shown the Yes campaign has been gaining ground in recent weeks.
Last night, the SNP pointed to an analysis of 17 polls conducted since November last year, which show a steady rise in support for independence month on month.
An ICM poll published yesterday showed that, on a national scale, support for independence is currently at 37%.
The Press and Journal survey was carried out at the height of a political row after Mr Osborne, backed by shadow chancellor Ed Balls and Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander, said the rest of the UK would not share the pound in the event of a “yes” vote.
First Minister Alex Salmond insisted that the move was “bluff and bluster” and maintained the position that it would be in the best interests of England, Wales and Scotland to share currency.
Today’s figures reveal a spike in the “no” vote in Inverness, up to 76%, while in Aberdeenshire the number was lower at 61%, with 19% still unsure.
In Moray, the findings showed that 30% of people have not yet made up their minds, with 60% saying they want to remain part of the UK. In the Granite City, 63% of those polled said they would be voting “no”.
Backing for a “yes” vote in Aberdeen dropped from 30% to 17%, with 21% undecided. However, across the whole of the north and north-east, a fifth of voters said they have yet to make up their minds, which could yet have a significant impact on the final vote in September.
The poll also showed that intense campaigning from both the Yes Scotland and Better Together camps over the past six months has not changed the thinking of the majority of voters.
Just 8% said that they had changed their mind on how they would vote in the last six months. More than 40% of respondents said they were unsure which of the two groups were “most truthful” in the debate.
But a majority – 55% – said they felt they had enough information to make an informed decision already.
Aberdeen had the highest percentage of residents who feel they still need more information, with 47% saying they did not have enough details.
In Inverness, an overwhelming 82% of voters felt they had enough information, while in the Highlands and Islands the figure was 66%.
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