Scottish Labour should ‘apologise’ as party face wipe-out

A YouGov poll for the Times newspaper puts support for SNP at the general election at 43 per cent, with support for Labour at 27 per cent. Earlier this week, an Ipsos-Mori survey for STV found support for the SNP at 52 per cent, with Labour support at 23 per cent.

If the results were replicated at the 2015 general election, Labour would see their Scottish MPs cut from 40 to just four.

According to the seat prediction website electoral calculus, the SNP would win 54 seats, Labour four and the Liberal Democrats would retain only Orkney and Shetland.

Meanwhile, Scottish Labour leadership candidate Jim Murphy says his party should “apologise” for not listening to voters after electoral defeat.

Leadership bid

Murphy will formally launch his leadership bid in Edinburgh today. The shadow international development secretary is the early favourite for the job after Johann Lamont resigned last week.

“Scotland is my country. The country I want to lead,” said Murphy. “But if Labour wants to win we must first change ourselves. The Scottish people want change – they couldn’t be clearer.

“I want to apologise because twice Scots have said they didn’t think we were good enough to govern in Scotland – in 2007 and 2011. We didn’t listen to them. That has to change.”

Mr Murphy played a key role for the better together campaign during the Scottish Independence referendum when he carried out his pro-union 100 Streets in 100 Days tour.

Jordan Lindsay, an activist for the yes campaign who has now joined the SNP, told Channel 4 News he was sceptical Murphy’s leadership bid would make much difference to Labour support in Scotland.

“Jim Murphy – he’s an MP, a London man. That’s not a very good picture being painted. The Scottish Labour leader should be an MSP.

“Labour are a fallen party in Scotland,” said the 17-year-old. “Their only safe seat is the toilet seat; that’s the direction they’re going.

“They’ve become the Scottish red Tory party. They need a major rebranding which will be very hard for them to do.”