UK ministers are to be ordered to tour England and talk up Scotland by the Prime Minister, Downing Street sources have said.
David Cameron wants to prove that a majority of people south of the border oppose Scottish independence.
A senior Number 10 source told The Courier English ministers would be “very much” actively encouraged to talk up Scotland as part of the union in their constituencies.
The insider said: “There will always be Little Englanders the Nigel Farage types but you don’t have to scratch very far beneath the surface (of English people) to find a love for Scotland.”
In the run-up to the referendum on independence for Quebec in 1995, a series of similar ‘United Canada’ events were organised that attracted thousands of supporters.
The source close to the Prime Minister added Mr Cameron “wishes the referendum could be held tomorrow”, with the Yes campaign trailing in the polls.
It has also emerged that former Labour Chancellor Alistair Darling, who also leads the Better Together Campaign, has held talks with the Prime Minister in recent days to discuss independence referendum tactics for the months ahead.
The source revealed Mr Cameron spoke with Mr Darling a fortnight ago, and has also discussed the referendum with Labour leader Ed Miliband.
The insider added Mr Cameron believes any victory even if it was as close as 1% would settle the constitutional argument “for a long time”.
Mr Cameron has also vowed to ensure the “positive” case for keeping Scotland part of the UK is heard more, to stop the SNP accusing his Government of “scaremongering”.
The SNP has made big play of Better Together activists referring to their campaign as “Project Fear” but, although the Number 10 insider admitted clashes between Mr Cameron and SNP politicians in the House of Commons can be “shouty”, “it’s important to keep the right balance.”
Meanwhile, it is understood that Mr Cameron believes Alex Salmond’s unfurling of a Saltire in the Royal Box at Wimbledon was an attempt to politicise Andy Murray’s historic victory.
Mr Salmond controversially brought the flag in his wife Moira’s handbag before waving it behind the Prime Minister’s head at the end of Sunday’s final.
Coalition sources are thought to believe the move “didn’t feel right” as “it was a day for sport, not politics.”
Mr Salmond, who was invited to watch the Centre Court match by the All England Club, has insisted that nobody sticks to the rule banning large flags and said “a few Saltires hoisted over Wimbledon doesn’t really harm at all”.