How big an offer to the undecided?

From today's Daily Record column

There just cannot be up to one million Scots out there who have not made their mind up on independence.

They are a fiery cross of hope for the Yes camp and a gnawing ringworm of doubt for the No side.

The high number of polling "undecideds" are astute voters waiting to be informed by an offer of what No means.

The No side looks like winning but can't just hang on, palms sweating, hoping to land on a safe ledge.

Everyone knows this battle is not settled with a near win. Like World War Z, some nationalists wouldn't know they were beaten. For the SNP a near loss is a staging post to a re-match hinged on the following elections.

Any Labour politician awaiting the disintegration of the SNP machine after a referendum defeat is deluding themselves.

Should the vote go No (looks likely) there are 11 Scottish Lib Dem seats going a begging in 2015. Some sitting ducks will survive, but if they topple the SNP is placed to gain.

There is no reason either why Labour's west of Scotland Westminster majorities should remain impregnable. Many are represented by SNP MSPs at Holyrood, well entrenched, looking for an electoral opportunity.

During the 2010 Coalition negotiations the only people talking to the SNP were security guards in an empty Palace of Westminster. Next time the numbers could be different, but SNP priorities won't be.

An emphatic referendum win is needed to head off this and several permutations of Labour's No nightmare.

Labour voters are the ones most likely to be drawn by the SNP bid. The question is how big a counter-offer can Labour make to its undecided supporters?

The majority of Scots are in favour of more Holyrood powers short of independence, if vague about what these powers should be.

The only one worth talking about is tax-raising power. Johann Lamont's  Devolution Commission was minded to devolve all income tax powers. It stalled and not because of London control-freakery, much as the SNP would love that.

The big asks by sceptical Labour MPs are that devolving tax should not leave Scotland worse off, affect the Barnett formula or diminish Scottish influence in the UK parliament.

Scottish Labour still has to persuade itself how bold it can be in offering a tax-raising alternative to nationalism. As Gordon Brown pointed out, an offer of no change will not do.

Labour better decide soon - there are one million people out there waiting for an offer.