Scotland
The SNP are doing better than I thought, although at this point I'd be very surprised if they actually managed to slip past Labour in the remaining few seats. What will this mean for the future of Scottish politics, though? Will the independence issue become more commonly debated in Holyrood and will the SNP be at a better vantage point from which to build popular support for a referendum? And how much of the SNP votes are actually protest votes against Labour rather than through a genuine desire for independence from the UK? Thoughts welcome on this one, as I'm fairly new to politicking in Scotland.
Speaking of protest votes, the Tories appear to have wiped the floor with both Labour and the Lib Dems in England. It's not looking good, but can anyone really say they're surprised?
posted by Lady M @ 2:08 pm
2 comments
2 Comments:
Labour didn't do that bad. LibDems are screwed though.
Amusingly, somene on Any Questions (wasn't properly paying attention, so missed who it was) said the most likely outcome for Scotland was that it would become the UK's Quebec - permanently whinging, but never quite gaining the critical mass needed for independence.
I lived in Glasgow for a couple of years and while I don't think this offers me any special insights into Scottish politics, it does seem to me from talking with Scots that this was more or less a protest vote. People are tired of Labour and they showed it in the polls, but this isn't the victory for Scottish nationalism that the SNP wishes it to be. A Channel 4 News fact check on the subject shows that attitudes of voters to the question of independence has fluctuated over time, but that a January 2007 Newsnight survey had 32% of Scots supporting it.
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