Kent MPs and business leaders warned today that Scottish independence could spell disaster for the British economy.

As Scotland goes to the polls to decide the future of the United Kingdom, Sir Roger Gale, MP for Thanet North, said independence “would do untold damage to our respective economies.”

The latest polls suggest the no vote stands at 52%, compared to 48% in favour of independence.

But polling companies ICM and Survation say the results include a margin of error almost identical to the no vote’s four-point lead, meaning the result could be on a knife edge.

Mr Gale said: “This is one of the most important decisions the United Kingdom has taken in years if not centuries.

“It’s going to affect the whole future of every single person in the British Isles and there is every chance we are about to sleepwalk into a disaster if we are not careful.”

Roger House, from the Federation of Small Businesses, said independence would have a negative effect on the way Britain was perceived abroad.

He said: “If Scotland does leave it’s going to damage the brand, it’s going to damage the UK and send out a signal that isn’t perhaps what we want.

“Size gives you clout – I don’t understand why anybody would want to break away, to me it’s just an inconceivable thought.”

About 17,500 Scots live in Kent but they will not get a say in the referendum, with only people resident in Scotland entitled to vote.

But a local poll carried out by KentOnline found the vast majority of those asked were firmly against independence.

One of those with a vote is Dave Brampton, 61, a chiropodist who lives in Inverness but works in Herne Bay, Whitstable and Canterbury.

He is voting no, but said both he and his partner, a coach driver, have suffered because of their views.

“We don’t even know what the country is going to be called. Will we still be Great Britain? There are so many unknowns" - MP Gareth Johnson

“They’ve given us so much abuse over the last 18 months: ‘can’t wait to get rid of you English’, and things like that.”

“But you get a bus pass at 60, free university, in fact the children are paid to go to university, and water rates are just £90 a year.

“It’s so cheap; I don’t know how they can keep that up.”

Dartford MP Gareth Johnson highlighted the uncertainties faced by both countries if the Yes campaign succeeds.

“We don’t really know what’s going to happen with the flag or the queen or the country," he said.

“We don’t even know what the country is going to be called. Will we still be Great Britain? There are so many unknowns.

“We could be going into some of the biggest upheaval the constitution of this country has ever seen."

Laura Sandys, MP for Thanet South, said the union was about more than just economics.

She said: “We must ensure we retain the United Kingdom as it is, and we must make sure we make an emotional request to Scotland to stay part of the United Kingdon, not just a transactional one.

“Some of this resurgence of Scotland demanding independence is about how centralised the country as a whole is. It’s not just about Scotland, it’s about trying to establish much greater power at the front line.”