End of the Conservative and Unionist party? Tory supporters split on whether they want the union to continue according to shock new poll

A third of people in England do not want the union of the United Kingdom to continue.

With don't knows and those who refused to answer removed, polling has shown 35% of people in England now favour English independence.

The poll carried out by YouGov on behalf of Yes Cymru showed Conservative supporters evenly split on the subject with 49% saying they support English independence to 51% who were opposed.

Dr Dafydd Trystan, a political scientist, said: “The polling evidence shows that a considerable minority of voters in England would vote to bring the United Kingdom to an end. 

“The picture is even more interesting when one looks at the voters of different parties. Conservative and Unionist voters split evenly on the future of the UK with almost half being proponents of England going it alone. 

“These findings accord with the lack of importance given to preserving the Union amongst Conservative voters in polling on Brexit and its impact on the relationship between England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.”

While support in London remained relatively low at 25%, the north and midlands saw the number of those in favour hit 38%.

The over 65s were the age group most likely to vote for English independence with 48% in favour.

Sion Jobbins, chair of Yes Cymru, said: "This poll, shows two interesting and important things.

“Firstly, that a significant minority of people in England, especially outside London, support an independent England.

“Secondly it shows that the support for an independent England comes from the polar opposite of support for Welsh and Scottish independence. Support for an independent England is among older people and people on the right whilst support for Welsh independence is mostly found among younger people and on the left.

“The problem for Wales is, despite having a parliament with some powers, we are still over ruled by a political party and ideology which is diametrically opposed to much of what the people of Wales believe in. Independence for England is the political elephant in the living room of British politics. Welsh independence is a way out for Wales."

• YouGov / YesCymru Survey - All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc. Total sample size was 1,384 adults. Fieldwork was undertaken between 17th - 18th June 2020.  The survey was carried out online. The figures have been weighted and are representative of all GB adults (aged 18+). All figures quoted are with Don’t Knows and those who refused excluded.
• Download the Results in full (pdf).