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Both sides in the Scottish independence debate claimed victory yesterday after the first televised duel between Alex Salmond and Alistair Darling.
The Scottish First Minister and the leader of the pro-UK Better Together campaign clashed in the head-to-head showdown on Tuesday night with just six weeks to go until voters north of the border decide if Scotland remains in the UK in the September 18 referendum.
A snap poll by ICM for the Guardian newspaper indicated Mr Darling may have scored a victory over the SNP leader, winning the debate by 56 per cent to 44 per cent.
Labour shadow foreign secretary Douglas Alexander was already celebrating, telling BBC Radio Scotland: “When the history of this campaign is written, last night will be seen as a hugely significant, perhaps decisive, moment in this referendum campaign.”
But Blair Jenkins, chief executive of the pro-independence Yes Scotland campaign, said the ICM survey after the debate showed Mr Salmond had been more successful in wooing undecided voters.
“The numbers in the ICM poll indicate very clearly that the movement over the debate was towards Yes, so the swing was towards Yes among don’t-knows in the ICM poll,” he said.
“Amongst the don’t-knows in the ICM poll last night, the First Minister was seen as winning the debate by 74 per cent to 26 per cent. That’s where this is going to be won.”
TSSA leader Manuel Cortes has said Mr Salmond must join the debate on public railways in Scotland.
He said: “We very much welcome the commitment that a future UK Labour government will give the Scottish Parliament the power to run its railways. We strongly believe that when this happens, Scotland’s railways will be returned to public ownership.”
Mr Cortes urged the First Minister to “come clean” and explain whether an independent Scottish government under his leadership would do the right thing for passengers and taxpayers and return Scotland’s railways to public ownership.
“At the moment, his administration is ready to re-let the Scotrail franchise in March 2015, just two short months before the next general election,” he added.
