SNP leaders endorse devolution plan despite misgivings

SNP Says "Yes" to Devolution

However some traditionalists expressed concern that the plans betrayed their goal of full independence, members approved a motion supporting the white paper and recommending that the party actively campaigns for a double yes vote in the referendum in September.

This vote must now be endorsed by the party's national council. The SNP's decision follows that of the Welsh nationalist party, Plaid Cymru, who voted to back the Government's plans for Welsh devolution on Saturday.

Alex Salmond hails step on road to independence

The party leader, Alex Salmond, is in no doubt that the creation of a Scottish parliament offers the SNP the chance to achieve their ultimate goal sooner rather than later.

No Glass Ceiling

It is now likely that two SNP members will take up seats which have been held open by Scotland Forward, the umbrella group spearheading the campaign for a `Yes, Yes' vote on September 11.

After the meeting at SNP HQ in Edinburgh today, Mr Salmond said: "Opinion polls show that the overwhelming majority of SNP voters - who numbered over 620,000 at the last election - wish to support constitutional change.

"If the national council approves, we intend to target these voters and the many others who support independence, so that Scotland can embark, at long last, on the road to its own Parliament - and that this proposal is at least a step in the right direction.

"The prime consideration in the NEC deliberations was to secure what was best for Scotland. We were in no doubt that a Yes, Yes vote carries the best prospect of taking Scotland Forward."

Poll Suggests a "Yes" "No" Vote is Possible

According to the ICM poll for the Scotland on Sunday newspaper, opposition to a Scottish parliament's right to levy up to 3p extra on top of the basic rate of income tax has increased by four points to 36%.

In comparison, support for the tax has fallen six points to 55%. Overall, the support for devolution is down four points to 68%.

The paper says the narrowing of opinions raises the possibility of the Government's "nightmare scenario" of a "Yes" to devolution and a "No" to tax raising powers in the referendum on September 11.

The poll also suggests that only one in five Scots believe devolution will strengthen the Union, while almost twice as many (33%) believe it will eventually lead to Scotland separating from the rest of the UK.

The results reflect the views of the anti-devolution Think Twice campaign whose response to the Government's White Paper on devolution was that it offered "a tax timebomb ticking away that would explode in the face of the Scottish public".

A future Conservative government would not dismantle a Scottish parliament or Welsh assembly