Campaigners for and against Scottish independence scrambled for votes today ahead of a historic referendum, as a religious leader prayed for harmony after polls showed Scots were almost evenly split. The Church of Scotland's moderator John Chalmers called for Scots to "live in harmony with one another" whatever the result and hailed the feverish run-up to Thursday's vote as "a wonderful democratic concerto".
"All of those who will vote 'Yes' and all of those who will vote 'No' need to remember that we belong together in the same Scotland," he told worshippers at St Mary's Episcopal Church in Edinburgh in a sermon broadcast on BBC radio nationwide.
"We cannot afford to lose the momentum and interest in civic life which this campaign has generated," said Chalmers, moderator of the general assembly of the Church, the largest religious group in Scotland.
The pro-union camp has been far ahead in the polls for many months, but the difference has narrowed in recent weeks and a raft of surveys over the weekend indicated that Thursday's vote could go either way.
A Survation poll yesterday showed the "No" camp at 47% and the "Yes" at 40.8%, with 9.0% undecided and 3.2% unwilling to say.
An Opinium survey for today's Observer newspaper put "No" at 47.7% and "Yes" at 42.3%, with 10% not voting or not sure if they would. An ICM online poll for the Sunday Telegraph placed the pro-independence campaign at 49% and the pro-UK at 42% with 9.0% undecided, but a senior pollster warned the sample size was too small. "The polls show that the referendum is on a knife-edge.
There is everything to play for," said Blair Jenkins, chief executive of the "Yes Scotland" campaign. Both sides are scrambling to win over the undecided voters who could hold the balance in the vote.
Pro-independence First Minister Alex Salmond continued a tour of Scotland's main cities, while his opponent Alistair Darling, a former British finance minister, was due to meet financial industry workers in Edinburgh.
The "Better Together" campaign has warned of a possible negative economic impact of a pro-independence vote. The pound has fallen on the financial markets as the polls have narrowed and the shares of Scottish businesses have also lost value on the stock exchange. Britain's main political parties have promised to grant Scotland more powers in the event of a "No" vote, arguing this would be the best of both worlds for Scots.
Read Also: From JK Rowling to Sir Alex Ferguson's views, 9 things you need to know about Scotland's independence referendum
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