The House of Lords Constitution Committee report called Referendum on Scottish Independence published today is highly significant, Margaret Curran said. The 18-page report examines the process on the referendum, and makes specific findings on the legality of holding the referendum, the number of questions, and the role of the Electoral Commission in setting the question.

The legal adviser to the Committee is Professor Adam Tomkins, Professor of Public Law at Glasgow University.

Margaret Curran, Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland, said:

"This hard-hitting report ups the pressure on the SNP.

"The Electoral Commission must have a formal role in ensuring a fair question and the SNP’s proposal to strip them of their existing role only fuels suspicion. I absolutely agree that it is an important constitutional check on executive power.

"I am urging the Scottish Government to agree that the Electoral Commission should have statutory authority to rule on the question, like they currently do for any other referendum.

"The law that authorises the referendum must keep that role for the Electoral Commission; it should not be watered down.

"This speaks to a much wider concern that the SNP are prepared to bend any rule to get the outcome they want. The decision of the Scottish people must clear, decisive and beyond reproach.

"That is why we need to settle the legality and procedures for the referendum as quickly as possible and move on to debate the real issue of substance, which is about whether or not it is in Scotland’s national interest to be a part of the United Kingdom."

17 February 2012