Poor on education and justice yet poll says SNP will take 62% of Scots votes

NICOLA Sturgeon is heading for a l andslide victory i n next year’s Holyrood election, despite failing to convince voters about the SNP’s record in office.

Buoyed by the First Minister’s popularity and Labour’s ongoing woes, the Nationalists are polling at an incredible 62 per cent – well above the 50 per cent it won in May’s General Election.

But fewer than a quarter of voters rate the party as ‘good’ on crime and justice, amid a series of scandals involving Police Scotland, while just 30 per cent said the same for its

‘Road back for Labour a

long and difficult one’

handling of education. However, the perceived failings are not translating into support for opposition parties.

Labour is languishing on just 20 per cent in constituency voting intentions. The Tories are on 12 per cent and the LibDems have dropped to a new low of 3 per cent.

Coupled with regional list voting intentions, the poll of 1,029 adults aged 16 or over found the SNP would win 78 seats if support were replicated next May, with Labour returning just 25 MSPs.

The Greens, who mainly focus on the top-up list system, would have an unprecedented nine MSPs, with the Tories on 15 and the LibDems two.

Tom Costley, head of pollsters TNS Scotland, said: ‘It is interesting that the SNP has such a strong lead while only a third or fewer of voters view its performance in the past year in a positive light.

‘This poll suggests that the opposition parties may find voters ready to listen to alternative policies – although with Labour still engaged in leadership elections at Scottish and UK level, the SNP’s chief rival in Scotland is not yet ready to present a programme to the electorate.

‘The SNP’s position may be largely due to the positive mood surrounding its strong performance in the referendum and general election. But there has been extensive media reporting of problems on devolved issues, especially in the NHS and around the new unified Police Scotland.’

In the poll, the Scottish Government’s record over the past 12 months secured a ‘good’ rating from just 23 per cent for crime and justice, 25 per cent on the economy, 30 per cent for education and 34 per cent for the NHS.

On crime and the health service, 29 per cent said the Nationalist administration had been ‘poor’, along with 24 per cent who said the same about the economy, and 19 per cent when quizzed about education. Large proportions of voters gave no verdict.

But even among the SNP’s own supporters, a quarter rated the party poor on the NHS and 22 per cent said the same on crime and justice.

The new single police force has faced controversies over stop-and- search, armed officers on routine duties and the M9 crash tragedy.

Meanwhile, 140,000 college places have been axed as the party refuses to introduce university tuition fees.

In the NHS, there was an accident and emergency waiting times crisis earlier this year.

Scottish Labour’s acting leader Iain Gray admitted: ‘The road back for Scottish Labour is going to be a long and difficult one.’

Leadership hopeful Ken Macintosh added: ‘If Scots can see that their own government is letting them down but are still prepared to vote for them, we are not offering a strong enough alternative.’

SNP business convener Derek Mackay said: ‘We take absolutely nothing for granted.’