Polls in Scotland show Sturgeon hit by handling of Salmond claims

The first opinion polls since Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon appeared before a parliamentary inquiry into the handling of harassment complaints against her predecessor Alex Salmond have suggested many voters doubt her account of the affair.

Colleagues in Sturgeon’s Scottish National party fear her bitter rift with her former mentor Salmond could undermine its hopes of winning a majority of seats in the Scottish parliament in elections scheduled for May, a feat they hope will provide a platform for a second independence referendum.

Asked in a poll by Panelbase for The Sunday Times if Sturgeon had been completely honest about the Salmond affair, 40 per cent of Scottish voters said she had not been, compared with 35 per cent who thought she had.

A poll for the Scotland on Sunday by Savanta ComRes reported 43 per cent of voters said the Salmond inquiry had made them trust Sturgeon less, compared with 26 per cent who trusted her more.

Sturgeon on Wednesday strongly denied Salmond’s allegations she breached the ministerial code by misleading parliament about when she learned of the complaints against him and of failing to quickly report meetings between the two at which they were discussed.

But Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross said the first minister had failed to account for her actions during the eight-hour grilling by a Scottish parliamentary committee. “The evidence is compelling and damning that Nicola Sturgeon has lied to parliament,” Ross told BBC Radio Scotland on Sunday.

People continue to put their faith and trust in the SNP and Nicola Sturgeon

The Scottish government accepted in court in January 2019 that its investigation into the complaints by two female civil servants was “procedurally unfair” and “tainted by apparent bias”. At a criminal trial last year, the former first minister was acquitted of all of 13 sexual offences charges against him.

Pro-union politicians hope the Salmond-Sturgeon rift and growing tensions in the governing SNP will soften the threat to the three century-old union between Scotland and England after more than 20 polls over the past year suggested more Scots back independence than staying in the UK.

The Panelbase poll found support for independence down three points since January to 46 per cent, while 47 per cent backed Scotland staying in the UK and 7 per cent of voters said they did not know.

The Savanta ComRes poll also suggested a lead for the union, but Sir John Curtice, a polling expert, said it was of the same magnitude as the same company found in February.

While the poll offered further evidence that independence support had fallen by February, it did not demonstrate “that the recent coverage of the Salmond inquiry has had any further impact”, Curtice tweeted.

Analysts have said the UK’s highly successful coronavirus vaccine rollout and impatience with Sturgeon’s caution on easing of lockdown may also have shifted opinion on independence.

“With a successful vaccination programme working for everyone in the country and UK-wide schemes that ensure people’s jobs are protected, it’s clear that we are stronger together,” said Pamela Nash, chief executive of anti-independence campaign group Scotland in Union.

Also on Sunday, the Scottish Conservatives said they would push ahead this week with plans for a no-confidence vote in the Scottish parliament against Sturgeon’s deputy first minister John Swinney, who has been handling evidence requests from the parliamentary committee.

The SNP said the Tory confidence vote threat was a “desperate” political game and that it was focused on recovery from coronavirus. “People continue to put their faith and trust in the SNP and Nicola Sturgeon,” said party deputy leader Keith Brown.

Under threat of such a vote, the Scottish government has over the past week published legal advice demonstrating its external lawyers’ mounting dismay about its defence of the original investigation into the complaints against Salmond by two civil servants.