Supreme Court to issue independence referendum judgement today as Scots remain split on constitution

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Scots remain split down the middle on independence and only a "fool" could know the outcome of a referendum, the country's top pollster has said.Professor John Curtice was speaking before the UK Supreme Court issues a ruling today on whether the Scottish Parliament has the power to stage an IndyRef2 without the prior approval of Westminster.

Nicola Sturgeon wants Scots to be asked the constitutional question for a second time on October 19 next year but the UK Government has repeatedly refused to agree to her plans - insisting the result of the 2014 referendum should be respected.

Recent polls show the country remains divided with both the Yes and No sides of the argument hovering around 50 per cent.Curtice said: "The honest truth is if anyone tells you they know what the outcome would be if there were to be a referendum tomorrow, they're a fool."The polling expert added the Supreme Court could decide it is unable to take a view on whether the Scottish Parliament has the power to call a referendum.Speaking at Glasgow University yesterday, Curtice said: "We may still not know by 10am whether or not the Supreme Court thinks that a bill passed by the Holyrood Parliament would or would not be ultra vries (acting beyond its legal authority) - which would leave everyone still arguing about the issue," he said."But that's one possibility.

The Supreme Court may decide with previous court decisions that it should not make a judgement."The UK Government has been arguing it should not, and the Scottish Government has been arguing it should."The First Minister asked her top law officer, Lord Advocate Dorothy Bain, to refer the case to the court earlier this year as a way of unblocking the constitutional log-jam.The SNP leader