Disaster for Nicola Sturgeon as just one in four Scots support fresh independence vote next year
Only 26 per cent wanted another referendum between autumn 2018 and spring 2019
NICOLA Sturgeon's bid for a second independence vote next year is only supported by a quarter of Scots, a damning poll revealed last night.
The Kantar Scottish Opinion Monitor found only 26 per cent wanted another referendum between autumn 2018 and spring 2019.
And 46 per cent said there should be no vote on leaving the UK at all.
The poll found an apparent "weakening" in support for independence, with 60 per cent backing staying in the UK while 40 per cent want Scotland to leave, with undecided voters excluded.
The survey puts support for independence below the 45 per cent that was recorded in the independence referendum in September 2014.
A total of 1,060 Scots aged 16 and above were questioned for the research, which took place between March 29 and April 11 - after the First Minister had announced her plans to hold another ballot on independence.
Almost half of those who voted Yes in 2014 want a second referendum to be held by spring 2019 but, in contrast, 72 per cent of No voters indicated they did not want there to be another vote.
The research also indicated one in five SNP supporters from last year’s election are against another vote.
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Tom Costley, head of Kantar in Scotland, said: "One group of particular interest is those who voted Yes in the 2014 independence referendum and then voted Leave in the EU referendum - one in three (30%) of this group do not want a referendum at all, possibly suggesting that leaving the EU was their primary goal and at the time Scottish independence seemed the best way to achieve this.
"It is a cautionary reminder that the positive feeling towards the EU expressed in the EU referendum doesn't necessarily translate into full support for independence for Scotland."
The figures mean 22 per cent of those who voted for independence in 2014 would now vote No, according to Kantar.
But only 8 per cent of No voters from 2014 have switch to being independence supporters.
Mr Costley added: "It is interesting to speculate on why there appears to be this weakening in the Yes vote despite Scotland voting clearly in favour of remaining within the EU, which is the stated position of the SNP-led Scottish Government.
"The forthcoming local authority elections in Scotland may well provide some pointers as to the extent to which the media criticism of the Scottish Government's performance in areas such as health and education may be having an impact with voters.
";The changing economic outlook in Scotland, particularly in relation to the oil industry, may also have led to voters reassessing independence."
Scottish Labour general election campaign manager James Kelly said: "This is yet another poll that shows people in Scotland do not want another divisive independence referendum.”
An SNP spokesman admitted most recent polls show support for independence on a knife-edge.