For the First Minister’s next trick … can he make independence as popular as he is?

The SNP’s final annual conference before Scotland’s Day of Destiny, as Alex Salmond calls the independence referendum, went rather better than expected.

Aware that they risked squandering their main media showcase of the year, ministers unlocked the box marked “November White Paper” and sprung a few policy surprises on energy and the minimum wage. These measures were calibrated to attract the votes of those Scots who tell opinion polls that they would vote Yes if they were £500 better off after independence.

Article in the Sunday Herald. Click here to read on.