Poll figures boost SNP against Labour

Scottish Nationalists were today celebrating a new poll which showed gains for the SNP and falls for Labour.

Scottish Nationalists were today celebrating a new poll which showed gains for the SNP and falls for Labour.

Outgoing SNP leader Alex Salmond said the System Three figures, which gave his party a lead over Labour in voting intentions for the Scottish parliament, were part of a consistent pattern.

He said there had been a six-point increase in support since the Westminster and Edinburgh elections, and told BBC Radio Scotland: "These are dramatic increases in political terms.

"The SNP is moving ahead very strongly indeed and the other parties are falling back, particularly Labour."

The System Three poll for the Herald newspaper was were conducted when the exam results furore dominated the political agenda. It put Labour on 34 per cent in first-past-the-post voting intentions, down 3 per cent on July, and the SNP on 36 per cent, up 1 per cent.

The Liberal Democrats are at 9 per cent, down 1 per cent, while the Tories have moved up 2 per cent to 13 per cent.

In the regional list vote, Labour has dropped 4 per cent to 29 per cent while the SNP is up 2 per cent at 32 per cent. The Liberal Democrats are unchanged at 12 per cent while the Tories are 2 per cent up at 13 per cent.

In Westminster voting intentions, Labour lead the field at 45 per cent to the SNP's 28 per cent, the Tories' 15 per cent and the Liberal Democrats 9 per cent.

The poll, of 1,027 people in 40 constituencies, was carried out from August 24-29.

Mr Salmond said: "It is both the performance of the SNP and a verdict on the Labour party.

"This is a consistent pattern in System Three polls - we have been ahead for four out of the last six months.

"In the Westminster voting intentions, which are also very good for us, we are up by six points and every other party is down from the last election."

But Scotland Office minister Brian Wilson said the next real text were the Westminster elections, where Labour's had a "massive" lead.