At the turn of the year, support for an independent Scotland was 23% according to media reports. Since then most polls have shown the campaign securing over 30% support. With just under 500 days to go what do these polls tell us? Not a lot, in terms of what the result will be in September 2014, but a great deal in terms of the steps we know we must take to win.
If every person who supports independence today persuades just one other person, then victory will be ours.
We are focused on one thing, and one thing only: securing that Yes vote on 18 September, 2014. There are three key arguments you can make to your friends and family today and in the weeks ahead:
First: Westminster isn't working for Scotland and that changes to our welfare state, which will hit 1 million Scottish families, are part of an agenda that is taking our nation in the wrong direction. In 2014 we can choose a new and better path.
Second: the people who care most about Scotland, that is the people of Scotland, will do the best job of making our nation a fairer and more prosperous place. Scotland's future should be in Scotland's hands.
Third: Scotland's got what it takes to be a prosperous and flourishing independent nation. Given all the many strengths we have in our economy, there is no doubt families across Scotland should be better off than they are today.
The power of our campaign is that the conversations you have within your social circles are 5 times more effective at persuading people than any newspaper story, and 10 times more effective than the words of most politicians.
We have plenty of time to make Scotland's case. And plenty of time to give people the information they need to turn their No today into a Yes when it matters.
That is why the Yes campaign is about building the largest grassroots movement that Scotland has ever seen, and you are already part of it.
Yes Scotland has more than 100 local groups and tens of thousands of volunteers out there right now making the positive case in communities across Scotland: in living rooms, in cafes, on message boards.
Those volunteers are the difference. You are the difference. You are the reason Scotland can and will be an independent nation - a necessary step if we are to build the sort of country we all know Scotland can and should be.
What you can do today
There are many ways you can get involved in the Yes campaign.
There are many ways you can get involved in the Yes campaign.
- You can volunteer to carry out a range of vital campaign activities This will help us gather together the grassroots campaigners who will help us win.
- You can find or set up an event to persuade people in your area to say Yes.
- If people are looking for information about an independent Scotland, you can let them know about the Questions Answered section of the website.
- And you can persuade your friends and family to sign the Yes declaration.