A ‘No’ vote supporter holds a sticker depicting Queen Elizabeth II in Edinburgh, on September 13, 2014/AFP
The “Yes” and “No” camps are racing to win over undecided voters ahead of the historic poll on Scottish independence on Thursday, with top bands playing a gig urging a vote for leaving Britain.
Meanwhile, Queen Elizabeth II reportedly made her first comment on the referendum.
British media said the 88-year-old monarch told an onlooker after attending church near her Balmoral estate in the Scottish Highlands on Sunday: “Well, I hope people will think very carefully about the future.”
As Scotland enters the most decisive week in its recent political history, opinion polls suggest the outcome of Thursday’s referendum will be extremely close.
An Opinium survey for Sunday’s Observer newspaper put the “No” to independence camp at 47.7 percent and “Yes” at 42.3 percent, with 10 percent not voting or not sure if they would.
A poll by Panelbase for the Sunday Times, with the undecideds taken out, gave “No” the slimmest of margins with 50.6 percent to 49.4 percent.
An ICM online poll for the Sunday Telegraph meanwhile gave the nationalists 49 percent, ahead of the pro-UK camp at 42 percent with 9.0 percent undecided, although pollsters warned the sample size could be too small to be representative.
“The polls show that the referendum is on a knife-edge. There is everything to play for,” said Blair Jenkins, chief executive of the “Yes Scotland” campaign.
Hopes were high among “Yes” supporters as some of the biggest names in Scottish rock took to the stage in Edinburgh Sunday urging people to vote for independence.
Franz Ferdinand, Mogwai and Frightened Rabbit sold out Edinburgh’s almost 3,000 capacity Usher Hall for “A Night For Scotland”.
Calum Forbes, a 22-year-old recent graduate and “Yes” supporter, said beforehand: “People are excited. The ‘Yes’ camp I feel are more invigorated but I’m personally terrified of being complacent.”
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