Plans to devolve more powers to Scotland if it stays in the UK will be unveiled within days after a shock poll put the Yes camp in the lead for the first time in advance of the referendum on independence on September 18.
George Osborne said that the final touches were being put to proposals for “much greater” fiscal autonomy and tax-raising abilities that would give Scots “the best of both worlds”.
The chancellor said that the YouGov research for The Sunday Times, which found that the pro-independence campaign was ahead by 51 per cent to 49 per cent, should galvanise those who wanted to keep the union together.
Speaking on the The Andrew Marr Show on BBC One, Mr Osborne denied that dire warnings about the dangers of splitting up had backfired.
He said: “This country faces a very, very big choice. Scotland faces a very big choice.
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“If people were in any doubt that they can stay at home, that they don’t need to go out to the polls and vote ‘no’ to avoid separation, they won’t be in that doubt today.
“They should also be in no doubt about the consequences of this decision, one of which is that Scotland will not be sharing the pound as an independent country with the rest of the UK if the separatists win the vote.”
The YouGov poll and other surveys showing a knife-edge vote next week have sent shockwaves through Westminster.
Alistair Darling, leader of the pro-Union Better Together campaign, said that the figures “must now serve as a wake-up call to anyone who thought the referendum result was a foregone conclusion”.
“If you want Scotland to remain part of the UK family you have to vote for it on September 18. Separation is for ever,” he said.
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Buckingham Palace has also expressed its concern about the prospect of a breakaway Scotland and a constitutional crisis.
Senior palace sources told The Sunday Times that a “yes” vote put the Union in uncharted territory, with the Queen receiving daily updates on the referendum.
The latest results show that the Yes camp has gained a four-point increase since the last poll published last week, and its approval ratings have gradually eaten into the 22 per cent lead held by the No campaign early last month.
Nicola Sturgeon, the SNP’s deputy first minister, hailed the new poll as “exceptionally positive and encouraging figures”.
“Yes still has a lot of work to do to win on the 18th, we remain the underdogs, but we approach the final ten days with huge enthusiasm and confidence,” she said.
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A second poll, however, carried out by Panelbase for Yes Scotland, found that the No campaign is leading 52 per cent to 48 per cent when undecided voters are excluded.
Although the results conflict, both indicate that the referendum is likely to be a closely fought battle.
David Cameron and Douglas Alexander, who spoke at the University of Glasgow today and lambasted the Yes campaign, could be in line to bear the bulk of the criticism for the latest results. A number of Conservative MPs may be calling on Mr Cameron to resign should the “yes” vote win and Scotland gain independence.
Meanwhile, Labour distanced itself from reports in the Mail on Sunday that Ed Miliband planned to put troops on the Scottish border if it does vote to go it alone.
“No Labour ‘plan’ for border guards in independent Scotland nor does Ed say that,” the party posted on Twitter.
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Mr Osborne said that sharing the currency after independence would be equivalent to a couple divorcing but retaining the same bank account.
“No ifs, no buts. We will not share the pound if Scotland separates from the rest of the UK,” he said.
He said it was “clear” that Scotland wanted more autonomy and the Tories, Labour and the Liberal Democrats had agreed to “deliver” on that.
He added: “You will see in the next few days a plan of action to give more powers to Scotland. More tax powers, more spending powers, more plans for powers over the welfare state.
“The timetable for delivering that will be put into effect the moment there is a ‘no’ vote in the referendum.
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“The clock will be ticking for delivering those powers, and then Scotland will have the best of both worlds.
“They will both avoid the risks of separation but have more control over their own destiny, which is where I think many Scots want to be.”
Mr Osborne played down speculation that Mr Cameron could be forced to resign in the event of a “yes” vote.
“This is not about the future of the British government in Westminster. This is not about the future of myself or David Cameron or anyone else,” he said.
Reacting to the timetable for new devoluion powers, the former prime minister Gordon Brown said:”I have been pressing, so has the Labour Party, for some weeks now for a more definitive statement about the timetable for the delivery of extra powers.
“I think when people see the full scale of the powers the Scottish Parliament will have, and our ability to do things while retaining the benefits of the UK, including the currency, I think they are going to decide on the extended powers of the Scottish Parliament within the UK.”
Mr Brown, who was campaigning with his wife Sarah in Kirkcaldy, added: “I hope the other parties will support what is a Labour proposal, a Labour initiative, so that these powers are guaranteed, and so a No vote doesn’t mean nothing happens, a No vote means we move quickly to the delivery of extra powers.”