THE huge gap which has developed between “Generation Yes” and older age groups when it comes to support for Scotland leaving the union has been demonstrated once again in latest polling.

The Ipsos MORI survey, published last week, found overall backing for Yes is now at 55% – suggesting the results of the 2014 referendum could be reversed if another vote was held now.

There was a stark difference in the age groups, with support for Yes at 71% among 16 to 34-year-olds – falling to 34% for those aged 65 and over.

It comes as Young Scots for Independence, the youth wing of the SNP, yesterday held its national conference in Perth – the first to be held in person for two years – which was addressed by Deputy First Minister John Swinney.

INTERACTIVE MAP: What's independence support like in my area?

Here, we ask young Yes supporters for their thoughts on supporting independence, indyref2 and what has led to the development of “Generation Yes”.

Robyn Graham, 20, Glasgow

Looking at the current state of politics at the moment, the UK Government are just incredibly out of touch with the general groundswell of opinion, including on social policy matters. It is quite inconsistent with what the majority of people in Scotland want.

If the Government is continually not representing what a nation wants, it only makes sense for it to be independent and for the decisions about us to be made by us. That is the key factor in why I first supported independence, but since then it has just been continually reinforced in my mind that I really do support independence because of everything that has happened in politics.With Brexit, Scotland has been completely ignored and the consequences for young people especially are so great.

I wasn’t old enough to vote in the first [independence] referendum, but although we were very young, a lot of people my age were engaged by it because it was absolutely everywhere. Similarly for the Brexit referendum, I was too young to vote, but the arguments made were absolutely everywhere.

I was working at COP a couple of weeks ago and a few delegates were saying to me that Scottish young people are known for being politically aware and politically engaged internationally; it is something they have picked up on. That is the reason why - it is because of these huge political events which have happened in recent history which are completely impossible to ignore.

Jamie Grant, 26, Stirling

I grew up in a very Labour family, and in 2012, when the referendum campaign really entered public consciousness, I was a no supporter. But when I came to university in Stirling in 2013, I had all those views really challenged and I joined the Yes group.

I support independence because of the potential we have. If you look across the North Sea to Norway, it is like “this is what you could have had”.

When people read history books in 100 or 200 years, what will the UK’s role be in that story? If I have my way, the way the history books will read is that the UK will go the way of other unions. The USSR is a footprint in history – the UK will probably become a footprint too, because the true way of harnessing the potential of the people and resources we have across the British Isles is to have these independent countries that can work together in genuine partnership.

I am 26, and from my perspective, the UK has been food banks, austerity, illegal wars and essentially a decaying big power.

I think there is cliche that you get more conservative the older you get – actually, you get more conservative the more wealth or assets you have.

There’s a big reason that younger people are leaning towards independence – they don’t have those assets.

That bleeds right into the constitutional question. What kind of country do you want to be? I would quite like to be a country where I could own my own house.

Ellie Gomersall, 22, Glasgow

I support independence as there is so much more potential that Scotland has as a country. Independence will open doors for us, independence gives us the opportunity to shape Scotland into the country that we want it to be – that the people of Scotland want it to be – rather than being held back by Tory governments in Westminster.

I am originally from England and moved to Scotland about three or four years ago. I wasn’t particularly aware of the nature of Scottish politics; it’s not something which is really taught in England at all. But I was very much aware of Brexit and the lies and the injustice of the Brexit campaign and I was also aware Scotland was being torn out of the EU against its will. Then I started to read about it and understand and realised that Scotland is better off as an independent country in the EU

than it is as part of the UK outwith the EU.

It is young people who are often hit the hardest – as well as that hope of what the world could be like, there is also the fear of what the world is going to be like if we don’t take action.

Adam Harris, 19, Edinburgh

In 2014 I was actually a firm No. It was just slowly but surely realising – over the past couple of years in particular – that there is so much that Scotland can’t control. Every news story I see I think we could be doing this differently. For example, recently the UK Government’s asylum policies. The way we are treating asylum seekers is horrific and an independent Scotland could have a human rights-based approach to immigration and it could be better.

A second independence referendum should happen definitely after the pandemic is out of the way; it is hard to say when that would be. I do think by the end of 2023 is reasonable, but we will see what happens.

I definitely think it is not surprising that young people are more in favour of Scottish independence, as Scottish independence is becoming a progressive movement and young people do tend to be more progressive. For older people it might just be the nostalgia of the Union which makes them want to stay.

Most of my friends are Yes supporters – there are one or two whose families are No supporters and they have been brought up to think that way. But that is how I was for a long time.

Sophie Brodie, 22, Armadale, West Lothian

Unfortunately I didn’t get the chance to vote in the first referendum because I was too young. My reasons for supporting independence are that I believe Scotland should have self-determination on every issue that pertains to Scotland. I think things will work better with the power in our hands.

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I would just love to see a Scotland where we get the government we choose and we have that right to self-determine what is going to happen. A Scotland that works for every single person that lives there – not just young people, but includes all the different people that make Scotland their home.

I would love to see indyref2 happen as soon as is practicable. We have the Covid recovery to think about – “after Covid” are the words used an awful lot when we are talking about political priorities at the moment – but I think that this referendum should be part of our Covid recovery as well, and our recovery from the impact of Brexit. I would really like to see it in 2023 or 2024, whenever it is practical to get it together.

The prospect of being able to build your own future, that is a really attractive thing about independence for a lot of young people. At the end of the day it doesn’t need to be in a Scotland that is led by the SNP or the Scottish Greens – it could be led by any party.

But it is that ability to make sure we are getting the Scotland we voted for that is what is attractive about independence for a lot of young people.