Keir Starmer was not wrong to describe the result of the Rutherglen and Hamilton West byelection as “seismic”. Labour’s gain was on a massive swing, 20 percentage points, that even the party’s wildest optimists could not dare predict.
The circumstances of the byelection were embarrassing for the SNP, the recall petition was an opportunity for a sustained period of Labour campaigning, a strong candidate was in place and both the SNP in Scotland and the Conservatives in the UK were running unpopular governments. But even accounting for all these factors, and the low turnout, the result was a big vindication for the Labour party with more general significance.
