SNP delivers political earthquake

Margaret Curran started her campaign in Glasgow East by declaring that the "Labour fightback starts here".

In Tollcross Park Leisure Centre on Friday morning that fightback crumbled under the force of an SNP-inspired "political earthquake". The party's John Mason did the unthinkable and took one of Labour's safest seats - overturning a majority of 13,500 with a swing of 22%...Yet it all seemed so unlikely right up until polling day.

Labour enjoyed a lead in the opinion polls and, in Margaret Curran, had a feisty Glaswegian who could strike a chord with many voters. The bookies, who are very rarely wrong, predicted a tight contest, but still made Labour firm favourites.

And with a better turnout than the ludicrous recent David Davis by-election, at 42%. The SNP didn't win this by default. Labour are in the shit in Scotland. Perhaps we'll see some humility now and they will start taking the SNP seriously. If they don't, and they lose their Scottish base, Labour are finished as a political force in the UK. Simple as.