Salmond fails to find inner Braveheart in TV debate

The leader of the campaign for Scottish independence failed to turn a US-style television debate into a victory for his cause, six weeks before Scotland votes on whether to break up the United Kingdom.

In an unexpected setback for those who support a breakaway, Alex Salmond, head of the pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP), failed to land a decisive blow in a lively debate against Alistair Darling, leader of the campaign to keep Scotland in the UK.

With the pro-independence camp trailing in opinion polls ahead of a September 18 referendum that will decide whether Scotland breaks its 307-year union with England, most commentators had predicted that Salmond, a powerful speaker, would notch up a rhetorical victory to breathe new life into his campaign.