State of the Union
We asked an SR panel
if the break-up of the UK
is now likely
Kenneth Roy
In Shotts, a key to
the SNP’s stunning
rout of Labour
R D Kernohan
It will look like
a national crisis.
It may produce one
Ian Hamilton
Why I didn’t
vote in
this election
Walter Humes
Despite the euphoria,
there is still an underlying
malaise in Scottish politics
State of the Nation
The Scottish Review’s
analysis of the seats,
region by region
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06.05.11
No. 400
The final score
SNP
Central Scotland (6)
Airdrie and Shotts
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth
East Kilbride
Falkirk East
Falkirk West
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse
Glasgow (5)
Glasgow Anniesland
Glasgow Cathcart
Glasgow Kelvin
Glasgow Shettleston
Glasgow Southside
Highlands and Islands (6)
Argyll and Bute
Caithness, Sutherland and Ross
Inverness and Nairn
Moray
Na h-Eileanan an Iar
Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch
Lothian (8)
Almond Valley
Edinburgh Central
Edinburgh Eastern
Edinburgh Pentlands
Edinburgh Southern
Edinburgh Western
Linlithgow
Midlothian North and Musselburgh
Mid Scotland and Fife (8)
Clackmannanshire and Dunblane
Dunfermline
Kirkcaldy
Mid Fife and Glenrothes
North East Fife
Perthshire North
Perthshire South and Kinross-shire
Stirling
North East Scotland (10)
Aberdeen Central
Aberdeen Donside
Aberdeen South and Kincardine North
Aberdeenshire East
Aberdeenshire West
Angus North and Mearns
Angus South
Banffshire and Buchan Coast
Dundee City East
Dundee City West
South Scotland (4)
Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley
Clydesdale
Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley
Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale
West Scotland (6)
Clydebank and Milngavie
Cunninghame North
Cunninghame South
Paisley
Renfrewshire North and West
Strathkelvin and Bearsden
Total 53
Labour
Central Scotland (3)
Coatbridge and Chryston
Motherwell and Wishaw
Uddingston and Bellshill
Glasgow (4)
Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn
Glasgow Pollok
Glasgow Provan
Rutherglen
Lothian (1)
Edinburgh Northern and Leith
Mid Scotland and Fife (1)
Cowdenbeath
South Scotland (2)
Dumfriesshire
East Lothian
West Scotland (4)
Dumbarton
Eastwood
Greenock and Inverclyde
Renfrewshire South
Total: 15
Conservatives
South Scotland (3)
Ayr
Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire
Galloway and West Dumfries
Total: 3
Liberal Democrats
Highlands and Islands (2)
Orkney
Shetland
Total: 2
Despite the euphoria,
there is still an underlying
malaise in Scottish politics
Walter Humes
The 2011 Scottish election is likely to be remembered for its paradoxical combination of a lacklustre campaign followed by a stunning set of results. I shall return to the campaign shortly but it is the outcome that demands immediate attention.
Although many commentators predicted that the Scottish National Party had the edge over Labour in the last few days before 5 May, nobody foresaw the seismic shift that has actually occurred. The SNP has made huge inroads into Labour’s heartland in the West of Scotland, signalling a major realignment of old tribal loyalties. Working-class voters have at last grown tired of the dishonest rhetoric, unfulfilled promises and shabby cronyism that have been the hallmark of too many Labour administrations. The next challenge for the SNP must surely be an assault on that bastion of municipal socialism, Glasgow City Council.
The collapse of the Liberal Democrats came as no surprise, given the unpopularity of Nick Clegg and the coalition government at Westminster. Less predictable was the poor showing of the Conservatives. Even in my own constituency of Eastwood, where boundary changes should have guaranteed Tory success, a well-managed campaign by the Labour candidate, Ken Macintosh, led to the defeat of the Conservative, Jackson Carlaw, who had a high profile locally but failed to impress.
This, however, was an exception and Labour now faces some serious soul-searching. Where do they go from here, particularly as they have lost some of their leading figures, such as Andy Kerr, Frank McAveety, Tom McCabe and David Whitton? The rout may even ensure that Iain Gray, who scraped home with a narrow majority, survives for a while as leader, given the lack of credible alternatives. Labour in Scotland runs the risk of being perceived as a ‘talent-free zone’, contrasting with the stature of leading SNP figures such as Alex Salmond, Nicola Sturgeon and John Swinney. The party’s ill-judged strategy in relation to the list vote, in which they failed to include ‘big names’ as a safety-net in case of defeat in the constituency elections, has led to the exodus of key Labour people from Holyrood. Left-wing supporters will also be deprived of the prospect of lively interventions in parliamentary debates from George Galloway, who failed to secure enough votes under the Solidarity banner on the Glasgow list.
The drama of today’s results should not be allowed to conceal an underlying malaise in Scottish political life. There is still a deep mistrust and lack of respect for most politicians.
As I write this, it is not yet clear whether the SNP will win enough seats to gain an overall majority but Alex Salmond will undoubtedly continue as first minister. He can justifiably claim a great personal success and party members will certainly want to celebrate their achievement. But he, and they, should be careful to avoid anything that smacks of triumphalism. Salmond has previously been accused of exhibiting some of the unattractive features of the arrogance of power and a second term in office runs the risk of developing that tendency further.
One of the great advantages of a democratic system of government is that it can get rid of governments, as well as elect them. If the nationalists overplay their hand, particularly on the issue of independence, they could soon find that the national mood turns against them. A week is a long time in politics. Most Scots are now sophisticated enough to realise that there are advantages in having an SNP government in Holyrood to give leverage against unpopular Tory/LibDem policies emanating from Westminster. That does not mean that they would view the prospect of the break-up of Britain with equanimity.
There is a further cautionary note that is important. While the election results represent an exciting moment in Scottish politics, the campaign which preceded it was disappointing. This should alert us to some underlying issues about the political process that need to be addressed. What we had during the campaign was a series of tired routines following scripts bereft of originality. Thus the nationalists accused opponents who disputed their achievements of ‘talking Scotland down’: Labour harped on about a referendum on independence being ‘a distraction’: the Tories claimed that they were the only party prepared to ‘tell it as it is’: and the Scottish Liberal Democrats struggled to maintain distance from their colleagues at Westminster.
The dead-hand of policy advisers, intent on removing anything that might have suggested imagination or creativity, was apparent throughout. The televised ‘debates’ became formal set pieces, with the leaders rehearsing practised lines and evading anything that might prove embarrassing. They even managed to dodge an opportunity for a lighter moment when, at the end of the BBC debate, they were asked to suggest titles for their autobiographies. All looked awkward and came up with feeble and unmemorable suggestions. Let me suggest some alternatives. Alex Salmond: ‘Trumping for Scotland’. Iain Gray: ‘The unfairness of surnames’. Annable Goldie: ‘From head girl to top Tory – where did I go wrong?’. Tavish Scott: ‘I used to have a mate called Nick’.
The drama of today’s results should not be allowed to conceal an underlying malaise in Scottish political life. There is still a deep mistrust and lack of respect for most politicians. On too many issues, we remain a nation in denial. We continue to deceive ourselves about the uglier aspects of Scottish society, evident in sectarianism, alcoholism and violent crime. We are reluctant to address hard questions about the achievements of our educational system, the extent of our commitment to equality, and the effectiveness of some of our public institutions. Once the euphoria of a night to remember has subsided, the new government should be judged on its willingness to move beyond the familiar rituals of Scottish politics and promote a form of honest dialogue, both with other parties and with the population as a whole, which might encourage the kind of civic activism that is needed in order to take Scotland forward as a nation at a time of economic fragility and global uncertainty.
Prior to his retirement Walter Humes held professorships at the universities of Aberdeen, Strathclyde and West of Scotland. He is now a visiting professor of education at the University of Stirling
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analysis of the seats,
region by region
Click here
Click here
Click here
Click here
Click here
Click here
Click here
06.05.11
No. 400
Airdrie and Shotts
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth
East Kilbride
Falkirk East
Falkirk West
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse
Glasgow Anniesland
Glasgow Cathcart
Glasgow Kelvin
Glasgow Shettleston
Glasgow Southside
Argyll and Bute
Caithness, Sutherland and Ross
Inverness and Nairn
Moray
Na h-Eileanan an Iar
Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch
Almond Valley
Edinburgh Central
Edinburgh Eastern
Edinburgh Pentlands
Edinburgh Southern
Edinburgh Western
Linlithgow
Midlothian North and Musselburgh
Clackmannanshire and Dunblane
Dunfermline
Kirkcaldy
Mid Fife and Glenrothes
North East Fife
Perthshire North
Perthshire South and Kinross-shire
Stirling
Aberdeen Central
Aberdeen Donside
Aberdeen South and Kincardine North
Aberdeenshire East
Aberdeenshire West
Angus North and Mearns
Angus South
Banffshire and Buchan Coast
Dundee City East
Dundee City West
Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley
Clydesdale
Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley
Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale
Clydebank and Milngavie
Cunninghame North
Cunninghame South
Paisley
Renfrewshire North and West
Strathkelvin and Bearsden
Labour
Coatbridge and Chryston
Motherwell and Wishaw
Uddingston and Bellshill
Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn
Glasgow Pollok
Glasgow Provan
Rutherglen
Edinburgh Northern and Leith
Cowdenbeath
Dumfriesshire
East Lothian
Dumbarton
Eastwood
Greenock and Inverclyde
Renfrewshire South
Conservatives
Ayr
Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire
Galloway and West Dumfries
Orkney
Shetland
Although many commentators predicted that the Scottish National Party had the edge over Labour in the last few days before 5 May, nobody foresaw the seismic shift that has actually occurred. The SNP has made huge inroads into Labour’s heartland in the West of Scotland, signalling a major realignment of old tribal loyalties. Working-class voters have at last grown tired of the dishonest rhetoric, unfulfilled promises and shabby cronyism that have been the hallmark of too many Labour administrations. The next challenge for the SNP must surely be an assault on that bastion of municipal socialism, Glasgow City Council.
The collapse of the Liberal Democrats came as no surprise, given the unpopularity of Nick Clegg and the coalition government at Westminster. Less predictable was the poor showing of the Conservatives. Even in my own constituency of Eastwood, where boundary changes should have guaranteed Tory success, a well-managed campaign by the Labour candidate, Ken Macintosh, led to the defeat of the Conservative, Jackson Carlaw, who had a high profile locally but failed to impress.
This, however, was an exception and Labour now faces some serious soul-searching. Where do they go from here, particularly as they have lost some of their leading figures, such as Andy Kerr, Frank McAveety, Tom McCabe and David Whitton? The rout may even ensure that Iain Gray, who scraped home with a narrow majority, survives for a while as leader, given the lack of credible alternatives. Labour in Scotland runs the risk of being perceived as a ‘talent-free zone’, contrasting with the stature of leading SNP figures such as Alex Salmond, Nicola Sturgeon and John Swinney. The party’s ill-judged strategy in relation to the list vote, in which they failed to include ‘big names’ as a safety-net in case of defeat in the constituency elections, has led to the exodus of key Labour people from Holyrood. Left-wing supporters will also be deprived of the prospect of lively interventions in parliamentary debates from George Galloway, who failed to secure enough votes under the Solidarity banner on the Glasgow list.
One of the great advantages of a democratic system of government is that it can get rid of governments, as well as elect them. If the nationalists overplay their hand, particularly on the issue of independence, they could soon find that the national mood turns against them. A week is a long time in politics. Most Scots are now sophisticated enough to realise that there are advantages in having an SNP government in Holyrood to give leverage against unpopular Tory/LibDem policies emanating from Westminster. That does not mean that they would view the prospect of the break-up of Britain with equanimity.
There is a further cautionary note that is important. While the election results represent an exciting moment in Scottish politics, the campaign which preceded it was disappointing. This should alert us to some underlying issues about the political process that need to be addressed. What we had during the campaign was a series of tired routines following scripts bereft of originality. Thus the nationalists accused opponents who disputed their achievements of ‘talking Scotland down’: Labour harped on about a referendum on independence being ‘a distraction’: the Tories claimed that they were the only party prepared to ‘tell it as it is’: and the Scottish Liberal Democrats struggled to maintain distance from their colleagues at Westminster.
The dead-hand of policy advisers, intent on removing anything that might have suggested imagination or creativity, was apparent throughout. The televised ‘debates’ became formal set pieces, with the leaders rehearsing practised lines and evading anything that might prove embarrassing. They even managed to dodge an opportunity for a lighter moment when, at the end of the BBC debate, they were asked to suggest titles for their autobiographies. All looked awkward and came up with feeble and unmemorable suggestions. Let me suggest some alternatives. Alex Salmond: ‘Trumping for Scotland’. Iain Gray: ‘The unfairness of surnames’. Annable Goldie: ‘From head girl to top Tory – where did I go wrong?’. Tavish Scott: ‘I used to have a mate called Nick’.
The drama of today’s results should not be allowed to conceal an underlying malaise in Scottish political life. There is still a deep mistrust and lack of respect for most politicians. On too many issues, we remain a nation in denial. We continue to deceive ourselves about the uglier aspects of Scottish society, evident in sectarianism, alcoholism and violent crime. We are reluctant to address hard questions about the achievements of our educational system, the extent of our commitment to equality, and the effectiveness of some of our public institutions. Once the euphoria of a night to remember has subsided, the new government should be judged on its willingness to move beyond the familiar rituals of Scottish politics and promote a form of honest dialogue, both with other parties and with the population as a whole, which might encourage the kind of civic activism that is needed in order to take Scotland forward as a nation at a time of economic fragility and global uncertainty.
