 | 'The poll is thought to be significant as it was taken last week around the time Gordon Brown was being formally installed as prime pinister, and suggests his promotion is not having an effect in his home country.' Paul Hutcheon in the Sunday Herald, 1 st June 2007. |  |
ALEX SALMOND is still enjoying a honeymoon period as first minister after a new opinion poll showed the SNP had increased its lead over Labour since their victory at May's Holyrood election.
The YouGov snapshot, the first survey to be taken since May's poll, puts the Nationalists 7% ahead of Labour on the constituency vote and five points in front on regional preferences.
The poll is thought to be significant as it was taken last week around the time Gordon Brown was being formally installed as prime pinister, and suggests his promotion is not having an effect in his home country.
YouGov found support for the SNP on the constituency vote to be on 38%, up five points from last month's election. Scottish Labour polled 31% of first-past-the-post preferences, one point down on the Holyrood election.
The Conservatives were down three points to 14%, while the Liberal Democrats dropped four points to 12%.
Elsewhere, the official opening of the Scottish parliament by the Queen yesterday was marred by a party political spat over Alex Salmond's pro-independence speech, in which he talked of how the SNP wanted to have a "national conversation" on a separate Scotland.
His remarks infuriated Labour's health spokesman Andy Kerr, who said Salmond's "inappropriate" speech was handled "very badly".
The big day also witnessed a spat between police and student nationalists outside the parliament, who were told to take down their anti-Union banner.
Following the Queen's address, Salmond told the parliament: "I believe in the restoration of an independent Scotland. Others in this chamber take a different view. I welcome that debate and the national conversation to follow. The challenge for all of us is to have that conversation with dignity, with respect and with substance."
However, Kerr said: "He handled it very badly and I refused to clap. If you were to examine previous speeches by first ministers, nobody has made a speech like that. The whole tone was inappropriate."
His complaints were backed up by other Labour politicians, though they refused to air their grievances publicly.
However, sources close to LibDem leader Nicol Stephen and Tory leader Annabel Goldie declined to back Kerr. One said: "I think Andy has jumped off the deep end with this one."
As well as seeing a gain on the constituency vote, the YouGov poll, which was commissioned by the SNP, also found support for the Nationalists rising on the list vote.
The SNP polled 33%, up two points since the election. Labour, in a sign their support is flatlining rather than falling, were down one point to 28%.
The regional vote also confirmed that the SNP-Labour rivalry is squeezing the other parties at Holyrood. The LibDems polled 10%, down one point, while the Conservatives remained unchanged on 14%. A category of "others" polled 16% of the vote on the regional list. Within this, the Greens polled 7%, the SSP 5% and Tommy Sheridan's Solidarity 1%.
One Labour insider said he was not concerned about the poll as new governments tend to get a boost in support following an election win. However, several MSPs agreed the poll was further bad news for the LibDems, who had already lost ground last month.
An SNP spokesperson said: "SNP support has moved forward strongly since the election, underlining the surge of goodwill towards the new government."
A spokesman for the LibDems said: "All new administrations enjoy some sort of honeymoon period. There will be lots of issues which will arise over the years which will shape how people think about the current government."
And a Labour spokesperson said: "This is laughably inconsistent with other polls."
Yesterday morning, the Queen was met at Holyrood by George Grubb, lord provost of Edinburgh, and introduced to parliament's presiding officer, Alex Fergusson.
The first minister had previously arrived with his wife, Moira. The SNP leader was followed by a group of VIPs, which included party backers such as Sir Sean Connery, Kwik-Fit founder Sir Tom Farmer and Stagecoach tycoon Brian Souter.
Addressing MSPs and other guests in the parliament's main chamber for the first time since the SNP took power in Scotland, the Queen said: "As you move into your third parliamentary session and a new form of politics, I'm confident that the Scottish people will be at the heart of the business of this session as you keep on walking with them and together build a better and more sustainable future for this great land."
A free concert in the Holyrood grounds and a National Theatre of Scotland performance of Black Watch, attended by Salmond, rounded off the day's celebrations.
THE SNP entered the summer recess yesterday, celebrating a new opinion poll that showed the Nationalists had increased their lead over Labour in Scotland.
The boost came as the increasingly bitter relationship between the two main parties disintegrated still further when Alex Salmond, the First Minister, used his speech at the ceremonial opening of the parliament on Saturday to push the case for independence.
The YouGov poll, commissioned by the SNP, gave the Nationalists a seven-point lead over Labour on the constituency vote and a five-point lead on the regional list vote.
Early indications from England have shown that Labour has enjoyed a "Brown bounce" south of the Border, putting the party into a clear lead over the Conservatives.
At the same time, the YouGov poll suggests that the SNP's first six weeks of government in Scotland have been viewed very positively by the public.
According to the survey, the SNP is on 38 per cent in the constituency vote, up five percentage points on May's election result, with Labour on 31 per cent, down one point compared with May.
The Conservatives were down three points to 14 per cent in the constituency vote, while the Liberal Democrats were down four points to 12 per cent.
On the list vote, the SNP was on 33 per cent, up two points since the election, with Labour on 28 per cent, down one.
The Liberal Democrats were down one point on 10 per cent, with the Conservatives unchanged on 14 per cent.
The Greens were on 7 per cent, the SSP on 5 per cent and Solidarity on 1 per cent in the regional list vote.
The Scottish YouGov poll contrasts sharply with recent UK surveys that have shown Labour making clear progress in England.
An ICM poll in the Guardian at the end of last week put Labour on 39 per cent, four points ahead of the Tories and seven points up on the previous month, the party's best performance since David Cameron took over as Conservative leader in 2005.
At the same time, a Daily Telegraph poll gave Labour 38 per cent, up five, and the Conservatives 35 per cent, down four.
What the new YouGov poll seems to show is that Mr Salmond's six-week surge of activity since the election, announcing, among other things, the scrapping of the graduate endowment and of tolls on the Forth and Tay road bridges, has had a positive impact.
It does appear as if the First Minister is still in his honeymoon period and is managing to head off any gains that Labour is making with the elevation of Gordon Brown to the premiership in London.
The SNP welcomed the poll findings as an indication of a "surge in goodwill towards the new parliament", while Labour dismissed the results as "laughably inconsistent" with other polls.
The ill-natured relationship between the SNP and Labour was highlighted yesterday by an angry spat over the contents of Mr Salmond's speech to the parliament at its official opening.
The First Minister used his speech in front of the Queen to talk of his desire for Scottish independence and his aim of starting a "national conversation" about Scotland's constitutional future. Following the Queen's address to parliament, Mr Salmond said: "I believe in the restoration of an independent Scotland. Others in this chamber take a different view.
"I welcome that debate and the national conversation to follow. The challenge for all of us is to have that conversation with dignity, with respect and with substance."
Andy Kerr, the shadow health secretary at Holyrood, described those remarks by Mr Salmond as "inappropriate" and claimed that the First Minister had "badly handled" such an important speech.
Mr Kerr was one of several Labour MSPs who refused to applaud Mr Salmond after his speech, setting a jarring tone to what was supposed to be a day of celebration for the parliament.
Mr Kerr said: "He handled it very badly and I refused to clap.
"If you were to examine previous speeches by first ministers, nobody has made a speech like that. The whole tone was inappropriate."
Scots' share of UK cash faces threat of cutback
SCOTLAND'S generous share of UK government cash could be under threat, it emerged last night.
It is understood the Treasury is looking to "iron out" discrepancies between the regions and nations of the United Kingdom.
Scotland currently receives about £1,500 more per head of population than England, an imbalance which was introduced to take account of increased deprivation in Scotland and the more rural and difficult geography.
But there has been an increasing level of resentment in England over the Scottish budget allocation, particularly since the SNP government started announcing major universal benefits for Scots - like the abolition of the graduate endowment and cuts in class sizes.
The formula allocating Scotland a percentage share of all UK spending increases was drawn up by Joel Barnett, the former Labour chief secretary to the Treasury, in 1978.
Now Lord Barnett, he has campaigned for his Barnett formula to be revised and it now appears that he may get his wish.
Gordon Brown also resisted any attempt to change the Barnett formula or to water down the financial advantages it gives Scotland. He, like other Labour leaders, has been aware for a long time that the SNP would exploit any attempt to cut Scotland's block grant and characterise it as "UK cuts" rather than evening out the financial allocation to the whole of the country.
But the Prime Minister may now be persuaded that it is more important to appease English anger than placate the Scottish Nationalists.
And, if that is the case, he may decide to heed the advice of his Treasury officials and re-examine the whole issue of the Barnett formula.
It is understood that Treasury officials are looking for ways of "ironing out the differences and bringing everything into line".
Officials are looking at every part of the issue and they may conclude another formula, set up to address the needs of all the parts of the UK, might be a better way of easing English resentment, rather than simply axing the Barnett formula.
The Barnett formula is not set rigidly. It changes every year, gradually converging to bring the spending increases for Scotland in line with England.
THE SNP has increased its lead over Labour since the Holyrood election, a new opinion poll has shown.
The Nationalists now have a seven-point lead over Labour on the constituency vote and a five-point lead on the regional list vote, according to the YouGov survey.
The SNP said the poll findings indicated a "surge in goodwill towards the new parliament".
The poll, commissioned by the SNP, put the party on 38 per cent in the constituency vote, up five percentage points on the May 3 election result, with Labour on 31 per cent, down a point on May.
The Conservatives were down three points to 14 per cent in the constituency vote, while the Liberal Democrats were down four points to 12 per cent. On the list vote, the SNP was on 33 per cent, up two points since the election, with Labour on 28 per cent, down one.
Labour said the Scottish findings were "laughably inconsistent" with other polls.
FIRST Minister Alex Salmond yesterday claimed his opponents had been "swept off their feet" by the range of issues the minority SNP government have addressed.
He made the claim as a poll showed 56 per cent feel the SNP are performing well.
The YouGov poll gave the First Minister a public recognition rating of 81 per cent - two points ahead of Labour leader Jack McConnell.
Salmond said of their first 50 days in power: "More people would have been taken aback by the speed of delivery and announcements than those who would be disappointed by the lack of pace."
He remained upbeat over the SNP losing the Edinburgh trams vote and dismissed claims the Executive still lacked a legislative programme. He said one would be brought forward after the recess, adding: "Not every action we want to take requires legislation."
Salmond said their first moves, such as scrapping graduate endowment fees, had been popular.
He also confirmed they will push for more control over North Sea revenues and that a White Paper on independence will come soon.
The SNP's success in the Scottish Parliament elections has led to a surge in party membership, according to figures released last night.
Around 100 new members have joined every week since the Nationalists defeated Labour on May 3. Since the turn of the year, the SNP's membership has jumped by 8% to 13,585, continuing an upward trend in recent years.
The figures also follow a weekend opinion poll which showed an increase in SNP support since the election.
Angus Robertson MP, the SNP's business convener and leader at Westminster, said he was delighted at the jump in membership.
He said: "SNP membership continues to grow apace as we carry forward the momentum of our election success. Around 100 new members are joining the SNP every week, making us Scotland's fastest-growing political party.
"The elections saw the SNP win the most seats in the Scottish Parliament, the most councillors across the nation, end enter government for the first time ever.We expect to see the party continue to grow as we start about the job of building a new and better future for Scotland."
At the end of 2003, SNP membership stood at 9450, but in 2004, following the return of Alex Salmond as party leader, the number of members broke through the 10,000 barrier and by the end of that year stood at 10,854.
A slight increase in 2005 saw membership reach 10,995, but in the run-up to the election the figures jumped considerably to 12,571 by the end of 2006.
Meanwhile, the YouGov opinion poll, which was commissioned by the SNP, showed support for the party had jumped by 5% in the constituency vote since the election and 2% in the regional vote.
By contrast, Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats all saw their support fall.
A spokesman for the SNP said: "Support for the party has really taken off since the election."
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