22nd May 2020 Comment Elections, parties & leaders
The reverse suffered by the SNP in the election in June 2017 resulted in Nicola Sturgeon putting her plans to hold a second independence referendum on ice. In contrast, the recovery in the party’s position in the election last December encouraged the First Minister to claim that she now had a mandate to pursue another […]
5th April 2020 Comment Elections, parties & leaders How Scotland should be governed Policy issues
The Alex Salmond trial was expected to make political waves. It may eventually do so. But as the trial progressed so the coronavirus pandemic came increasingly to dominate the country’s attention – and eventually bring the rhythms of everyday life, as well as its politics, to a halt. Still, we might be wondering what immediate […]
7th February 2020 Comment How Scotland should be governed The Scottish independence referendum
Brexit day was greeted north of the border with as many as three polls of how people would vote in another independence referendum – one from YouGov, one from Survation, and one from Panelbase. Between them they appeared to confirm the already substantial evidence that the pursuit of Brexit is undermining popular support for the […]
17th January 2020 Comment The Scottish independence referendum
The outcome of last month’s general election has paved the way for a constitutional confrontation between the UK and the Scottish Governments. The success of the Conservatives in winning an overall parliamentary majority of 80 has ensured that the UK will leave the EU at the end of this month. But equally, the success of […]
7th January 2020 Comment Site News
As you might already have noticed (and we foreshadowed last month) over the New Year we have launched a redesigned version of the whatscotlandthinks website. The site was originally launched in June 2013 in advance of the Scottish independence referendum. Ever since then it has endeavoured to provide a comprehensive database of polling data on […]
19th December 2019 Comment Elections, parties & leaders
The outcome of the 2019 UK general election has added a new twist to the debate about Scotland’s constitutional future. Thanks to the Conservatives’ success in winning an overall majority, it is now clear that the UK will leave the European Union. However, in Scotland, the Conservatives fell back while the SNP enjoyed an eight- […]
18th December 2019 Comment Site News
Since it was established in the run-up to the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, the function of WhatScotlandThinks has been to provide all those who visit it with impartial, up-to-date information on public attitudes towards how Scotland and the constituent parts of the UK are, and should be, governed. In order to maintain our commitment to […]
2nd December 2019 Comment National identity and cultural issues
So far, two Scotland-only polls of vote intentions in the Westminster election on December 12th have been published. One, by Panelbase for Sunday Times Scotland was released in two tranches over the last two weekends. The other, by Ipsos MORI, was published by STV News last Thursday – the first poll from this stable for […]
14th October 2019 Comment Elections, parties & leaders How Scotland should be governed The Scottish independence referendum
The message from the polls continues to be promising for the SNP, who are gathered this week in Aberdeen for their autumn conference. But the path towards holding a second independence referendum that delivers a majority vote for Yes still potentially contains many sharp corners and diversions. Three conditions are likely to have to be […]
18th September 2019 Comment How Scotland should be governed
Five years ago today, Scotland went to the polls to decide whether it should become an independent country or remain part of the UK. The ballot was meant to settle the issue for a generation. In practice, however, it appears to be as unresolved as it has ever been. The result of the 2014 referendum […]
Explore the What UK Thinks website. Non-partisan information on UK attitudes to the EU before and since the EU Referendum.
