What will be the outcome of the General Election

[Beats]

He has an extra hour or two that's all. All he's doing is demonstrating how desperate he is to stay in power. Anyone with an ounce of moral fibre and decency would have resigned as PM and leader of New Labour. Still, when you were never democratically elected in the first place....

 

Where you been?

 

Banned or Holiday?

[Therapist]

Where you been?

 

Banned or Holiday?

 

Holiday in the Maldives. Left on 23/4, got back about 11 pm on Wednesday night.

 

Seems so long ago now, sadly.

[The Vulture]

Brown is just doing what any other politician would do, I don't agree that he should still be PM but fair play to him for not budging. He is taking advantage of an outdated electrol system so is playing within the rules.

[Therapist]

Brown is just doing what any other politician would do, I don't agree that he should still be PM but fair play to him for not budging. He is taking advantage of an outdated electrol system so is playing within the rules.

 

Brown = Sad Desperado.

 

Cyclops and Dignity are strangers that shall never meet.

[Beats]

Holiday in the Maldives. Left on 23/4, got back about 11 pm on Wednesday night.

 

Seems so long ago now, sadly.

 

Always the same mate.

[The Real Maroonblood]

This election proves, yet again, that Scotland is a diddy little "country" that's set in its ways. By blindly voting for Labour and Cyclops, the brain-dead hordes have denied the Conservative and Unionist party the clear cut victory it deserves based on voting patterns elsewhere.

 

The Scottish electorate - Scotland's shame.

 

Having said that, it was great to see the SNP and Fat Alex do so badly.

So when is it you are leaving this diddy country?

[The Vulture]

Brown = Sad Desperado.

 

Cyclops and Dignity are strangers that shall never meet.

 

Few politicians have dignity, look at how dignified they were during the expenses scandel. If Clegg/Cameron where in GBs position, they would be behaving in a similar way.

 

When was the first past the post system introduced ? Maybe it's time for the voting system to be modernised ?

[Miller Jambo 60]

So when is it you are leaving this diddy country?

 

 

Have to admit mate, living wi labour for the last 3 years has been torture.

PETROL , dearest in the world PROBS.

Anyway who cares , Brown will go maybe not quick but soon.

How Scotland can live wi NEW LABOUR MUPS MUPS

 

 

Dougal

[Beats]

Have to admit mate, living wi labour for the last 3 years has been torture.

PETROL , dearest in the world PROBS.

Anyway who cares , Brown will go maybe not quick but soon.

How Scotland can live wi NEW LABOUR MUPS MUPS

 

 

Dougal

 

 

I've missed you mate

[The Real Maroonblood]

Have to admit mate, living wi labour for the last 3 years has been torture.

PETROL , dearest in the world PROBS.

Anyway who cares , Brown will go maybe not quick but soon.

How Scotland can live wi NEW LABOUR MUPS MUPS

 

 

Dougal

Scotland lived with old labour especially after that cow Thatcher f****d up in Scotland.

[Denny Crane]

 

From that picture, it appears the troll has just heard what happened in the seat of Barking.

[Gizmo]

Brown = Sad Desperado.

 

Cyclops and Dignity are strangers that shall never meet.

 

Dignity & Therapist are also strangers it seems. Cyclops indeed - have some respect.

[Therapist]

Dignity & Therapist are also strangers it seems. Cyclops indeed - have some respect.

 

Brown doesn't deserve any respect. He's wrecked the country, disproportionately taxed the rich because he thinks it'll go down well with his left supporters and save his skin, and now he won't even resign as PM having been soundly thrashed. History will not be kind to Cyclops, and rightly so.

[Craig_]

Holiday in the Maldives. Left on 23/4, got back about 11 pm on Wednesday night.

 

Seems so long ago now, sadly.

 

Where's a volcanic ash cloud when you need one?!

[2NaFish]

failure for tories.

failure for labour.

failure for lib dems.

 

epic election fail.

[Miller Jambo 60]

Scotland lived with old labour especially after that cow Thatcher f****d up in Scotland.

 

 

True mate, but Thatcher is now an old soul not WAF, so lets move on.

SNP and LD in Scotland are a joke ok.

Either the big 2 .

Like

Gers and tims.

[Miller Jambo 60]

Dignity & Therapist are also strangers it seems. Cyclops indeed - have some respect.

 

 

Hes at the wind up , joke mate, go away if you cant stand the pain.

Im racked off ,

 

 

Dougstar.

[Rick Grimes]

There's an irony there. The Tory wipeouts in Scotland meant that talent like Forsyth and Rifkind headed south or to the Lords. Similarly, the Labour big brass didn't want anything to do with Holyrood. Local councillors were able to glorify themselves instead.

 

Salmond is head and shoulders above any politician in the Scottish Parliament.

 

 

this is very true. as for the lack of political talent in Scotland, I think its overplayed to say that we are seriously lacking in talent. you could equally apply the monkey in a red rosette analogy to many blue rosette wearing monkeys down south. we have several heavyweight Scottish politicians in the House of Commons across the parties. for a population 1/10th the size of England I'd say we're pretty well off.

 

on another note, I mentioned my mate last night - well done to Ian Murray who won Edinburgh South, a thoroughly good bloke & a Hearts season ticket holder. not my party of choice, but Ian is a smart, principled lad who will go on to do very well.

[Rick Grimes]

failure for tories.

failure for labour.

failure for lib dems.

 

epic election fail.

 

 

the only real winner was the Green Party. this alone makes me smile.

[JamboJay]

It could be that auld Broon is playing a long game. Not for himself, I think his peg has shoogled its last and he is currently picking his jaiket up on his way to the door.

 

Whoever won that election is holding a very poisoned chalice, the electorate is not going to be pleased, or forgiving, with the inevitable Tax hikes & Cost cutting that none of the parties wanted to tell you about. If, what looks like the Con-Lib alliance lasts and the next election is 4-5 years away, do you think that the incumbents will be thanked? Oh, Whoopee I've lost my job/am paying full whack for Jemima's nursery/I've paid HOW much in Tax, I think I'll vote of these nice people again, Aye, Right!

 

Labours next leader will, after lying low for the interim and improving the party finances will probably stroll into No. 10. The only way for Cameron to keep any power after the necessary financial straightjacket has been loosened might be via a change in the voting method, a form of PR might allow him a few more years in the big hoose on the wee street.

 

As for the SNP they never really tried, never spent/wasted any money in trying to win seats, they will be waiting for the next Scottish Parly elections where they will probably point out that voting for Labour didn?t stop you getting a Big Bad Tory in charge. (I know that voting for the SNP would not have stopped the Big Bad Tory, but most Labour supporters are simple folk.)

[Harry Palmer]

the only real winner was the Green Party. this alone makes me smile.

 

Excellent to see the Green Party have an MP.

 

I actually agree with Therapist. Scotland seems to love being the Labour heartland no matter what they do.

 

"I'll vote Labour because my dad did and I've always voted them....." Absolute baws.

 

However, I think all Cameron wants is to be able to say in the future "I was PM once....."

 

This situation is new to myself and no doubt millions of other voters, I suppose we'll just have to wait until tomorrow to see what's happening. I fully expect a Tory/Lib coalition and Dave to be PM next week....

 

Then the fun begins...

 

I think I'll look into emigrating.

[leginten]

So, among other interesting outcomes:

 

- the Lib Dems have polled nearly one in four of the votes in England but have a grand total of 43 seats there

- Labour in England, on fewer than one million votes more, has just short of 150 seats more

- the Lib Dems in Scotland polled fewer votes than the SNP yet have nearly twice as many MPs

- the Tories have one more seat in Scotland than they do in Belgium but will call the shots on reserved matters

- over 2 million people in England voted for parties outside the big three (compared with 7m for Labour) but have no representation.

 

Satisfactory?

[Rick Grimes]

If, what looks like the Con-Lib alliance lasts and the next election is 4-5 years away, do you think that the incumbents will be thanked?

 

 

its not going to happen. the parties are too far apart to do anything other than a short term confidence & supply deal. Clegg is just playing the game - he can't push for PR if he outright rejects the Tories immediately can he?

[JamboJay]

Oh, Nearly forgot.

 

I saw scenes last night that should make some English Councils squirm with embarrassment, it made them look no better than election organisers in Zimbabwe. At least up here in 'Mickey Mouse Land' we can organise elections properly, eventually after the debacle of the automatic vote card reader problem.

 

Also

 

I think that the Leaders debates were an affront to the type of democracy we are supposed to have in this country, why not give the audience a whole stack of custard pies and the winner is the leader that has less custard pie on him than the other two, it would be as meaningful and much more fun to watch.

[Rick Grimes]

So, among other interesting outcomes:

 

- the Lib Dems have polled nearly one in four of the votes in England but have a grand total of 43 seats there

- Labour in England, on fewer than one million votes more, has just short of 150 seats more

- the Lib Dems in Scotland polled fewer votes than the SNP yet have nearly twice as many MPs

- the Tories have one more seat in Scotland than they do in Belgium but will call the shots on reserved matters

- over 2 million people in England voted for parties outside the big three (compared with 7m for Labour) but have no representation.

 

Satisfactory?

 

exactly. its busted.

[Craig Gordons Gloves]

This election proves, yet again, that Scotland is a diddy little "country" that's set in its ways. By blindly voting for Labour and Cyclops, the brain-dead hordes have denied the Conservative and Unionist party the clear cut victory it deserves based on voting patterns elsewhere.

 

The Scottish electorate - Scotland's shame.

 

Having said that, it was great to see the SNP and Fat Alex do so badly.

 

or how about the Scottish Electorate deciding that your beloved Conservative & Unionist party aren't the ones that they would like to have as their MP's and voting patterns elsewhere also proved that the current Conservative are less popular than John Major in 1992.

[Harry Palmer]

exactly. its busted.

 

Busted flush springs to mind.....

 

Flushing over and over again to get rid of a shite that won't go....

 

Interpret that as you wish....

[Denny Crane]

Oh, Nearly forgot.

 

I saw scenes last night that should make some English Councils squirm with embarrassment, it made them look no better than election organisers in Zimbabwe. At least up here in 'Mickey Mouse Land' we can organise elections properly, eventually after the debacle of the automatic vote card reader problem.

 

Also

 

I think that the Leaders debates were an affront to the type of democracy we are supposed to have in this country, why not give the audience a whole stack of custard pies and the winner is the leader that has less custard pie on him than the other two, it would be as meaningful and much more fun to watch.

 

Have you forgotten about the voting fiasco of 2007's Holyrood elections?

[shaun.lawson]

Agreed.

 

I just don't get Clegg. Brown & Labour have banged on about "securing the recovery" and how the Tories would put it at risk. At the same time, Clegg and the LibDems want electoral reform... theres little or no-chance the Tories will give them that, but Labour might go a big part, if not all of the way, to meet them on that.

 

If Brown and Clegg really meant anything they said this past few weeks, then anything less than a pact - or some kind of governmental understanding - would be an act of utter betrayal to the broad left. Did I just dream the last few weeks ? Would Clegg really forego possibly his one chance of wrangling a major electoral concession, just because he feels that the Tories have the right to govern as the largest single party. Just for Cleggs information, heres the most striking figure from today. Votes - not seats - but VOTES.

 

15 Million Labour & LibDem votes v's 10.5 Million Tory votes.

 

After an anti-climactic performance by him and his party, Clegg should grab that electoral reform branch. The political and economic situation is far too volatile ... if he's thinking that he might have a stronger hand in 6 or 12 months time. Sometimes in politics, tomorrow never comes - and he should take whatever he can now in terms of concessions and power-sharing.

 

And if he think he can cosy up to Cameron, he's playing with suicide. Not only will the Tories play him like a fiddle, but he'll rapidly be seen as the weak bloke who basically faciliated a Tory government. I can't speak for England, but that will crucify the Scottish LibDems in advance of 2011 and infuriate their generally left-of-centre activists.

 

If I was a LibDem I'd be feeling I'm about to be shafted at this point in time.

 

I'm a Lib Dem - and if there's an informal deal between us and the Tories (I can't see there being a formal coalition, and imagine we'll take it issue by issue), I wouldn't be feeling 'shafted', no. Because this is what happens in hung Parliaments (in Germany, they have a coalition between the Conservatives and Greens. Works rather well, believe it or not); and also because Clegg's hand is almost impossibly weak.

 

"Do a deal with Labour!", many cry - but Labour plus Lib Dem equals not 326, but 315. And if you think the electorate would happily accept Labour straight back in government immediately after chucking them out, you're crackers. They'd punish both of us at the ballot box. It'd be the greatest possible argument against PR, and the Tories would exploit it utterly. And the more left of centre we behave, the more we suffer under FPTP, for reasons I explained earlier.

 

As Geoff said, our base is in south-west England, where we're viewed (wrongly, if you look at our policies) as soft Tory. Not only that, but most of our target seats are Tory ones; and most of those under threat at future elections are coveted by the Tories. As last night showed, such is our ridiculous system, it's electoral suicide not to look to shore this up at least as much as being left of Labour (which is where we are on most issues now). The complication, though, is that whereas many Lib Dem voters are soft Tory, our members are almost entirely Social Democrats - and will never tolerate a formal coalition with Cameron.

 

Clegg is damned if he does, damned if he doesn't - largely because of our insane electoral system. Such is the arithmetic, the only way in which a stable government can emerge in this Parliament is if we support the Tories; and if you think the public would happily say 'yes' to proportional representation as advocated by a Labour-Lib Dem coalition of the losers, you're again crackers. Not least because the economy is everyone's number one priority - and economic crisis demands stable government.

 

What I think will happen is we'll agree to support them on some issues, not oppose them on some others, and maintain a stance of what you might call "armed neutrality", in order to at least give a working government a shot. Then we'll probably end up doing this all over again a year or so from now. But it's us who have the least wriggle room: one wrong move from Clegg could have horrendous repercussions. Labour, meanwhile, can renew in opposition - and if you ask me, their medium and longer term outlook is far and away the best of the three main parties, largely because FPTP is quite disgracefully biased towards them.

[Deek]

So, among other interesting outcomes:

 

- the Lib Dems have polled nearly one in four of the votes in England but have a grand total of 43 seats there

- Labour in England, on fewer than one million votes more, has just short of 150 seats more

- the Lib Dems in Scotland polled fewer votes than the SNP yet have nearly twice as many MPs

- the Tories have one more seat in Scotland than they do in Belgium but will call the shots on reserved matters

- over 2 million people in England voted for parties outside the big three (compared with 7m for Labour) but have no representation.

 

Satisfactory?

 

Nearly 1 in 5 people in Scotland voted Conservative yet have only one seat out of 59, satisfactory?

[kitster]

Have you forgotten about the voting fiasco of 2007's Holyrood elections?

 

Fiasco? Yes, but only due to the fact it was badly implemented and the system wasn't properly tested. Douglas Alexander is ultimately to blame for that.

 

If you've ever worked in an environment where mark sense counting is implemented you'll know how important it is that its robust from the outset. Teething glitches can be tolerated in other areas but never in an event as important as an election.

 

It is progress though, lessons have been learned and I think the Scottish election will go far more smoothly next year.

 

The fact the general election still consists of a polling clerk with a ruler and a pencil with all votes counted by hand is quite frankly archaic. When the enquiry about yesterday comes they'll recommend implementing better technology.

[2NaFish]

 

The fact the general election still consists of a polling clerk with a ruler and a pencil with all votes counted by hand is quite frankly archaic. When the enquiry about yesterday comes they'll recommend implementing better technology.

 

The fact that there seemed to be no party line followed at ten o'clock shows how necessary it is. Had there been one laptop at each station clear instructions could've been sent out en masse at 9 when things started looking hairy. Instead it was absolutely amateur.

[Gizmo]

Hes at the wind up , joke mate, go away if you cant stand the pain.

Im racked off ,

 

 

Dougstar.

 

He can only 'joke' so often before it becomes who he is. Besides, he suggests someone has no dignity before going on to label them "cyclops". I'm afraid, troll or not, I will always call someone on their hypocrisy!

[stirlo]

Once again this election has highlighted what a complete joke the voting system in this country is.

 

On the bright side, if the Lib-dems are successful in obtaining the guarantee of electoral reform in return for a place in government - then this could prove to be a momentous election IMO.

 

If - and its a big if - the voting system is changed, the party will finally be over for the Tory and Labour parties and that would be a great thing IMO.

[leginten]

Nearly 1 in 5 people in Scotland voted Conservative yet have only one seat out of 59, satisfactory?

 

 

Of course not. Which is why I said "among other" interesting outcomes. The list of injustices is as long as you want to make it - I just chose a few which particularly irk me. Not that I have any particular sympathy for the Tories on this score - they have, after all, had a nice little cartel going with Labour on the basis of first past the post for as long as anyone can remember.

 

And for what it's worth, I think the political scene in Scotland - this self-harming, self-perpetuating continuum of Labour mediocrity and tawdriness - would be much healthier with strong Conservative opposition.

[Coco]

Of course not. Which is why I said "among other" interesting outcomes. The list of injustices is as long as you want to make it - I just chose a few which particularly irk me. Not that I have any particular sympathy for the Tories on this score - they have, after all, had a nice little cartel going with Labour on the basis of first past the post for as long as anyone can remember.

 

And for what it's worth, I think the political scene in Scotland - this self-harming, self-perpetuating continuum of Labour mediocrity and tawdriness - would be much healthier with strong Conservative opposition.

 

The behaviour and performance of the Conservatives in Edinburgh in particular have been beyond belief. The MSPs have gone native at Holyrood and offer no opposition at all. And the Councillors have been incredibly poor - ardent supporters of the tram line etc. That the idiot Conservative Councillors have not seen that there was an opportunity to gain huge support in Edinburgh and start building a base of support for the national elections is unbelievable. Huge share of children privately educated, huge general dissatisfaction with the Council's congestion creation schemes, huge dissatisfaction with the waste in Council spending etc.

 

But no - they offer no opposition. They got what they deserved last night - nothing.

[kitster]

Once again this election has highlighted what a complete joke the voting system in this country is.

 

On the bright side, if the Lib-dems are successful in obtaining the guarantee of electoral reform in return for a place in government - then this could prove to be a momentous election IMO.

 

If - and its a big if - the voting system is changed, the party will finally be over for the Tory and Labour parties and that would be a great thing IMO.

 

It won't be if they strike a deal with tories..they've proposed a 'committee' about it and won't shake that stance according to the BBC..I hope Clegg is pressing for referendum about it. We should all know how useful a few boys behind closed doors are.

[Coco]

I hope that we will now see some free transfers and swap deals.

 

Vince Cable and Simon Hughes can be swapped for Frank Field.

 

If that happens they would be in their real political homes and the deal could be done - Con-Lib coalition for the next 4 years. Sorting out the mess left by Labour, who would then be ripping themselves apart with leadership contests.

[leginten]

The behaviour and performance of the Conservatives in Edinburgh in particular have been beyond belief. The MSPs have gone native at Holyrood and offer no opposition at all. And the Councillors have been incredibly poor - ardent supporters of the tram line etc. That the idiot Conservative Councillors have not seen that there was an opportunity to gain huge support in Edinburgh and start building a base of support for the national elections is unbelievable. Huge share of children privately educated, huge general dissatisfaction with the Council's congestion creation schemes, huge dissatisfaction with the waste in Council spending etc.

 

But no - they offer no opposition. They got what they deserved last night - nothing.

 

I think you're right about the Conservative representatives at Holyrood. They actually seem a lot more content with devolution than their Labour counterparts, who are having a miserable time in their unaccustomed opposition role. The prospect of real tension between the Tories at Westminster and Holyrood once the inevitable cuts arrive is something Salmond will no doubt be aware of; I shouldn't imagine he will find it at all difficult to drive a huge wedge between them.

 

All in all, last night was a miserable night for politics. The Lib Dems will never make the breakthrough if they couldn't do it this time round, and the urban areas of Scotland confirmed that no degree of incompetence or corruption will prevent them from returning the candidates of the Peepul's Party.

[Geoff Kilpatrick]

I think you're right about the Conservative representatives at Holyrood. They actually seem a lot more content with devolution than their Labour counterparts, who are having a miserable time in their unaccustomed opposition role. The prospect of real tension between the Tories at Westminster and Holyrood once the inevitable cuts arrive is something Salmond will no doubt be aware of; I shouldn't imagine he will find it at all difficult to drive a huge wedge between them.

 

All in all, last night was a miserable night for politics. The Lib Dems will never make the breakthrough if they couldn't do it this time round, and the urban areas of Scotland confirmed that no degree of incompetence or corruption will prevent them from returning the candidates of the Peepul's Party.

 

 

That's a pretty good summation.

 

Meanwhile, they have this weekend to sort things out. If there is any procrastination the markets will be scenting blood.

[kitster]

I think you're right about the Conservative representatives at Holyrood. They actually seem a lot more content with devolution than their Labour counterparts, who are having a miserable time in their unaccustomed opposition role. The prospect of real tension between the Tories at Westminster and Holyrood once the inevitable cuts arrive is something Salmond will no doubt be aware of; I shouldn't imagine he will find it at all difficult to drive a huge wedge between them.

 

All in all, last night was a miserable night for politics. The Lib Dems will never make the breakthrough if they couldn't do it this time round, and the urban areas of Scotland confirmed that no degree of incompetence or corruption will prevent them from returning the candidates of the Peepul's Party.

 

 

It clearly shows the Tories don't care about Scotland. I could do a better job than their activists do up here considering how unhappy we all are. I don't think the result has been completely miserable though. What goes around comes around eventually.

[kitster]

[deleted]

 

 

Labour don't care about Scotland they take us for granted. Yesterday it was proven many don't have the guts for an alternative solution.

[Miller Jambo 60]

Labour don't care about Scotland they take us for granted. Yesterday it was proven many don't have the guts for an alternative solution.

 

 

Was not getting at you pal, but the same dole mups and aerses vote for labour.

My last year has been gash , trying to find a decent job but getting managers from hell and agencies who dont give a fk.

But im big and hard enough to bounce back, so hope to land my job soon.

Which i will.

 

 

Dougstar.

[blairdin]

Labour don't care about Scotland they take us for granted. Yesterday it was proven many don't have the guts for an alternative solution.

 

Good post Kits.

 

The way I see it, under the current UK system the big two parties will always pander to south of England, where the the majority of the UK elecorate live and votes to be won are, meaning we'll always be the poor relations up here. Hopefully that penny will drop eventually and we'll come up that alternative.

[Randle P McMurphy]

Labour don't care about Scotland they take us for granted. Yesterday it was proven many don't have the guts for an alternative solution.

 

the problem is the lack of a viable alternative solution. if the parties had been forced to actually detail what their spending cuts would involve post election, then there would at least have been a choice to make. however the manifestos were so wishy washy that it is inevitable that people will vote for the party who has screwed them over least in the past.

[IMA MAROON]

so the Scottish populace's votes are based on an anti English agenda? Pesh. the difference in the voting patterns are to do with values, tradition, history etc. oxbridge/ eton educated english leaders are entertained in any party, it's the policies and knowledge of how the parties have conducted themselves in the past that has a bearing. don't remember tony benn (Oxford educated, former peer and probably the very definition of english poshness) being hated by many scottish people.

 

It's not anti-English, they are not voting for the SNP.

 

They will not vote for who they see as the toffs/poshfolk/snobs/ even if it is better for this country. There is something wrong in that.

 

The English voters seem to be able to change from Labour to Conservative if they think they are the best on offer.

 

Labour are an absolute shambles. Scottish Labour voters have been shown up for what they are.

[felix]

All in all, last night was a miserable night for politics. The Lib Dems will never make the breakthrough if they couldn't do it this time round, and the urban areas of Scotland confirmed that no degree of incompetence or corruption will prevent them from returning the candidates of the Peepul's Party.

 

 

I think that's right.

 

FWIW; I saw Thursdays result as a huge anti-Labour reaction, and the small Labour swing as an anti-Tory reaction.

 

Until the system is revised where voters can voite for what they want, not what they don't - then what's the point ?

 

A Labour / Lib Dem coilition could actually do something about this.

[Randle P McMurphy]

It's not anti-English, they are not voting for the SNP.

 

They will not vote for who they see as the toffs/poshfolk/snobs/ even if it is better for this country. There is something wrong in that.

 

The English voters seem to be able to change from Labour to Conservative if they think they are the best on offer.

 

Labour are an absolute shambles. Scottish Labour voters have been shown up for what they are.

 

 

maybe some parts of the UK are more gullible than others? there was certainly nothing in the tory manifesto that provided me with any reassurance that they were the best on offer. repeatedly saying that someone else is **** without providing any credence around what you would be able to offer as an alternative isn't enough for me.

 

in your blinkered view there were only 2 choices in this election, vote tory or vote against tory (or more simplistically vote english posh or vote non english non posh)

[IMA MAROON]

It's not blinkered. It's been between the blues and the reds for one hundred years.

[leginten]

It clearly shows the Tories don't care about Scotland. I could do a better job than their activists do up here considering how unhappy we all are. I don't think the result has been completely miserable though. What goes around comes around eventually.

 

Scotland certainly isn't a priority for the Conservatives, and we/they are sailing into very choppy waters again in terms of the relationship between Westminster and Scotland. If Cameron is Prime Minister, the Tories will once again risk appearing as little more than colonial governors. One MP in fifty-nine? What kind of mandate is that? We haven't really moved on from the 1980s, except that the existence of the devolved Holyrood parliament will throw into even greater relief the disparity between the political landscapes of Scotland and England.

 

And the irony is that the voting system which denies the Tories (and the other major parties outside Labour) far greater representation in Scotland is the one that sustains the divine right to rule at Westminster enjoyed by them and/or Labour in perpetuity.