New poll shows Scotland would reject independence amid Alex Salmond controversy

Three cases of a new variant of Covid-19 first identified in Brazil have been confirmed in Scotland. [View email online]( [Subscribe]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [The Scotsman] Mar 1, 2021 Good morning, Welcome to Monday's newsletter from [The Scotsman.]( Our readers are our lifeblood, so with a critical few months coming up in Scottish politics, we want to thank you for your support by offering 25% off an annual [digital subscription]( with us. Use the code POLITICS25 and get unlimited access to all our politics news, commentary and analysis in print and on your phone, tablet and desktop. New poll reveals that Scottish independence would be rejected The most recent polling from Survation shows that 44 per cent of Scots would support staying in the United Kingdom if a second referendum on Scottish independence were held tomorrow. The poll also shows that a majority now believe the SNP to have been in power for "too long". [Have a full look at some of the surprising outcomes from the latest poll.]( Inside the unit where Scotland's first Covid-19 was treated one year ago Exactly one year ago today, Senior Charge Nurse at the Regional Infectious Diseases Unit at Edinburgh's Western General Hospital received a call to say the first confirmed case of Covid-19 in Scotland was being transferred to her care. We go inside that unit to recap the day they received the news, and how life has been since. [Read the full feature here.]( Opinion: Scotland is now a failed state and Holyrood's first enquiry shows First Minister is the cause Our columnist Brian Monteith believes Nicola Sturgeon is currently leading a 'failed state' after recent events in Scottish parliament. 'There is a time in politics when a public mood begins to develop that is unstoppable and ushers in change that a little while ago seemed impossible' he writes, as he looks at the fallout from last week's Alex Salmond case. 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