Sunday, August 12, 2012

Panelbase poll : Olympics boost support for independence, as 'Britishing' effect of the Games proves to be London wishful thinking

Thanks to Marcia on the previous thread for alerting me to the latest Panelbase poll on independence, which has produced some highly encouraging results. The standard voting intention figures for the referendum show an essentially identical result to last month's very close poll, which is extraordinary enough given the diet of unrelenting Britishness that we've been force-fed over the intervening period.

Yes 35% (-1)
No 44% (-1)


However, the truly stunning figures come from a supplementary question. It seems fairly likely that the Sunday Times asked Panelbase to enquire whether the Olympics had made people feel more unionist or independence-friendly because they were confident of getting a result that was to their taste. The classic schoolboy error of falling for your own propaganda.

Q. How has Team GB's success affected your attitude to Scottish Independence?

More Unionist 4%

Slightly More Unionist 4%

TOTAL MORE UNIONIST 8%

More for Independence 8%

Slightly More for Independence 4%

TOTAL MORE FOR INDEPENDENCE 12%


I would of course have brought the glad tidings to the Tory multitude at Political Betting, but I'm still banned. I've asked for an explanation, and to be told whether the ban is permanent or temporary, but as of yet I haven't received a reply. Luckily, however, one of the two regular SNP posters who haven't been banned yet was on hand to impart the good news!

9 comments:

  1. The Unionist reaction both inside and outside Scotland to the Olympic Games has been odd. They believed that gaining several magic golden amulets (Gold Medals) and the continuous recitation of the magic spell (God Save the Queen) would undo forty years of political change in Scotland. For them every Team GB gold medal has been a body shot to that dastardly Salmond who is falling to the floor under a fusillade of hot righteous British Gold fired from the podium. It's their favourite theme in the media.

    The even believed that the dancing girls and the singing of Jerusalem at the opening ceremony was probably enough to stop the SNP in their tracks.

    Those of us who are not signed up whole-heartedly to the British project simply do not understand how much the Olympics mean to the British nationalists inside and outside Scotland. For them it has been a time of patriotic fervour unmatched since VE day. On their part they can't understand how we are not affected by the whole flag waving business and the relentless cheer-leading Britishness of the media.

    For me, the Olympics have been like wandering accidentally into someone else's wedding party in a hotel. The bride's is nice, the groom is handsome and everyone is having a good time but you're not part of it and you don't want to be part of it because you don't belong there. You'd prefer to be at a wedding involving your own family.

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  2. I've actually really enjoyed the last two weeks, Doug - I've avidly watched the Olympics on TV since I was a young child, so the chance to go to my first Olympic event in Glasgow was really special. But the whole thing has just made me long to see a Scottish team compete even more than I did before, and judging by these poll results I'm not alone in that.

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  3. Even the sometimes sensible Iain Macwhirter is consumed by the Britnat Olympic fever.
    He says that an independent Scotland would be down with the also-rans like Norway.

    Norway 163 Olympic Gold medals from 4million people, UKania 245 Oympic Gold medals from 60 million and a global empire to draw talented immigrants from.

    Why are even the moderate unionists reduced to such levels of biogotry against smaller countries?

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  4. The Sunday Times low key publishing of the poll speaks for it's self. If it had gone the other way whould we have bigger headlines?

    Having cheered all the GB successes I shall be stuffing envelopes for the Yes campaign whilst watching the closing ceremony.

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  5. James, the sport and athletes have been fine.

    However the media presentation and commentary couldn't get anymore jingoistic even if it was England winning the World Cup.

    Watching on British TV you just can't avoid it and concentrate on the sport. When you're not part of someone else's patriotic fervour it just gets wearing.

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  6. Like James I had no problem with enjoying the sport and took the entirely predictable levels of inept jingoism with the amused scorn it deserved.

    But Doug is right. It can't be shut out totally and it does get wearing which is precisely what this poll proved.

    This along with the jubilee was the Britnats biggest cultural weapons they were absolutely sure would leave the nationalist cause whimpering in a corner.

    There could of course be some polls to come which can be spun the other way and be less than clear cut.

    But be in no doubt, those politicians in labour the tories and the lib dems who thought the olypmics would be an easy fix for their troubles have just been proved badly wrong. So there will recriminations aplenty among their number and among the media who thought they knew what they were doing by overcooking it so incompetently.

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  7. There's a giant Basque flag in the middle of the stadium and FREEDOM in huge letters flashing round the stands.

    Maybe they were listening after all?

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  8. I wouldn't take anything from a PanelBase poll.

    It's a bona fide commercial pollster which rewards people for taking part in polls - they earn reward points which can be redeemed against purchases.

    And, funny that attention has been drawn to its findings by the Murdoch press.

    Coincidence or magic? YOU decide!

    Olympics were great. I'm usually cynical about the games and the 'spirit' since it became a big advert for a variety of dodgy sponsors.

    The one thing that can't be ignored though is the cost.

    Two weeks and all that money.

    I can think of better things it could have been spent on.

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  9. "It's a bona fide commercial pollster which rewards people for taking part in polls"

    Sounds remarkably similar to YouGov, then - ie. one of the UK's top pollsters.

    "And, funny that attention has been drawn to its findings by the Murdoch press."

    If you mean that the Sunday Times commissioned the poll in the expectation that the results would provide a useful Nat-bashing story, but then felt obliged to report it in low-key fashion even when it didn't deliver, I see your point. In case you hadn't noticed, that part of the Murdoch empire is firmly anti-independence.

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