The National:

Last month the ultra-yoon, pretendy think tank These Islands spent thousands of pounds on a focus group to try and discover why more Scots were backing independence.

As you’ll know, there have now been 14 polls putting Yes firmly in the lead, and that's left many on the other side scratching their heads.

Why, they ask? Why can it be?

Yesterday, after listening to the hours and hours and hours and hours of people telling them exactly why it is, These Islands published their conclusions: the voters are idiots.

There we are folks, that’s what the other side think of you. If you’re backing Yes at the next referendum, you’re “misinformed”.

The 64 voters taking part were identified as “disgruntled Remainers”: Scots who backed No in 2014, Remain in 2016 and who have now switched to, or are leaning towards independence.

SNP members and “self-identified Rangers supporters” were barred from being included.

Presumably secret Rangers fans, and those without tattoos of King Billy were allowed in.

When asked what first comes to mind when thinking about the UK and Scotland respectively, the UK was associated with power, armed forces, the Queen, and Tory governments.

When asked about Scotland they said home, family, pride and beautiful scenery. When asked about the Prime Minister, participants described him as “bumbling” and “blabbering” and not up to the job.

“He’s embarrassing himself,” said one. “He’s a zombie,” said another.

When asked about the First Minister, the responses were far more positive.

“Wouldn’t be ashamed of my country if Nicola was in charge,” said one. “Sturgeon gives us a reason to be independent,” added another.

Though there were fears she might be a “one man band”.

“What does she offer beyond independence?” asked another.

The focus groupers did not feel very appreciated by the London government.

“Conservative government couldn’t care less” said one.

“They couldn’t give a damn about Scotland” another agreed.

“They don’t care about us, they honestly don’t care about us” added one. “They’re driving us out if anything. We’re the poor relative, an afterthought”.

“The UK has pissed on us again about Brexit,” summed up one.

Many of the disgruntled Remainers were former Labour voters. But with the party in the doldrums, they were looking towards the SNP.

“If Keir was pro-Union, it would give a reason to consider that future,” one voter considering a Yes vote said.

“If the Labour party improved, it would change things [view on independence]” added another.

When one group of independence supporters was asked whether Labour being in power in Westminster would make a difference, they answered that it would.

“That would put a spanner in the works for me” they said.

“Then supporting independence would be tougher for me – it makes me think”, added another.

When Hague’s groups were asked to “think about the value of the UK as a sharing Union, as a mechanism for smoothing out economic ups and downs and sharing resources when and where they are needed most,” there was “immediate scepticism”.

“Is it sharing, or are we being taken advantage of?” one said.

The groups also revealed an impatience to have the second referendum relatively soon.

“Covid’s such a mess, now is the ideal time,” said one.

“If we’re ever going to do it, it might as well be now”.

“We’re not going anywhere as part of the UK”.

Wee Kevin Hague, top dog at These Islands, wasn’t happy at the results.

He claimed the rising support for independence was “based principally on faith and fact-denial.”

“Scotland does not so much have an uninformed electorate as one that has been very skilfully fed misinformation.”