Labour head to Downing Street and the passing of Peak SNP

Labour's thumping victory in the Rutherglen by-election is a sign of things to come

I’m actually on holiday this week and about to go and see if I can catch a sea trout but, first, some quick thoughts on Labour’s “seismic” (their word, not mine, and one you will see everywhere) victory in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election.

First, two years is a long time in politics. There have not been many Scottish by-elections since the Age of the SNP dawned in 2007. Before Rutherglen, the most recent House of Commons by-election in Scotland was the Airdrie & Shotts contest prompted by the decision of Neil Gray, the sitting MP, to move from Westminster t Holyrood. This was the result: