Independence dominates Scottish election campaign

LONDON (Reuters) - Scottish political leaders clashed over independence and nuclear weapons on Sunday as a poll showed a pro-independence party on course to become the biggest party in the Scottish parliament in May 3 elections.

Leaders of the four main parties battled it out in a rare 90-minute debate on Scottish television as the campaign for the election, which could have a big impact on the country's constitutional future, moved into a crucial phase.

The Labour Party is alarmed by opinion polls showing the Scottish National Party (SNP) could oust Labour as the largest party in the Scottish parliament.

The SNP is committed, if it wins, to holding a referendum in the next four years on Scottish independence from London.

"I think Scotland should be an equal country along with all the other countries which have political and economic control," SNP leader Alex Salmond said.

A Scottish television poll published on Sunday suggested the SNP would win 51 seats to Labour's 44 in the 129-member Scottish parliament. In the current parliament, the SNP has 25 seats compared with Labour's 50.

Labour has grown increasingly unpopular in Scotland after a decade of rule by Prime Minister Tony Blair. Many Scots opposed Blair's backing for the U.S.-led Iraq war and are against his decision to buy a new generation of nuclear-armed submarines, which are based in Scotland.

Blair will step down in a few months, with Chancellor Gordon Brown, a Scot, expected to take over as prime minister.

The SNP would need a coalition partner to command an overall majority in the Scottish parliament.