Reform UK beats Labour in Scottish by-election
Reform UK has beaten Labour in a Scottish by-election.
Nigel Farage's party criticised 'irrelevant' opposition after the surprise by-election result in Clydebank Waterfront, one of six wards in the council area of West Dunbartonshire.
Reform UK came second to the SNP after voting reached stage seven, the most stages the election could have, with a head-to-head race between the SNP's Kevin Crawford and the Reform candidate David Smith.
Mr Crawford won the seat with 1,331 first-preference votes revealed in the early hours of Friday morning.
Mr Smith secured 919 first-preference votes over Scottish Labour's Maureen McGlinchey, who received 770 votes. The Scottish Conservatives mustered 87 votes.
The by-election was held after James McElhill, the former SNP councillor, resigned citing health reasons.
It comes ahead of a crucial by-election next month in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, following the death of MSP Christina McKelvie.
Mr Farage is set to visit the constituency before the vote on June 5.
Reform claimed the Clydebank result was 'truly historic for Scottish politics' as Richard Leonard, a former leader of Scottish Labour, said decisions by the current UK Labour Government have 'severely impaired' the party north of the border in the run-up to next year's Scottish parliament elections.
Recent polling puts Reform above 10 per cent, which could result in up to 12 MSPs.
Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, has been regularly criticised for unpopular decisions taken in the first months of his tenure in office, including reducing winter fuel payments for pensioners, not compensating the Waspi women and benefit cuts.
More than 100 MPs are understood to have signed a private letter urging the Government to delay the changes and rethink, while dozens of Labour MPs are set to rebel against the Government's plan, paving the way for the Prime Minister's biggest revolt yet.
North of the border, Scottish Labour has gone from winning the UK election and reducing the SNP to just nine MPs, to dropping to second in the polls ahead of next year's Holyrood vote, with some of the most recent data suggesting the party could drop below the surging Reform.
'I'll be honest with you, decisions being taken by Keir Starmer have severely impaired Scottish Labour's ability to get across its message about how we want social justice, how we want to make changes to the economy and so on,' Mr Leonard told BBC Radio Scotland.
'So, life has been made a lot more difficult for the current Scottish Labour leadership, I think.'
Mr Leonard, a Central Scotland MSP who has said he will not seek re-election, served as the Scottish Labour leader between 2017 and 2021, when he was succeeded by current leader Anas Sarwar.
The former leader refused to criticise his successor, instead saying he has confidence in the party's leadership in Scotland.
'I have to say that lots of people gave running commentaries on my leadership and I'm not prepared to enter into a running commentary on Anas's leadership,' he said.
'But I'm quite sure that with a year to go, there is still a good prospect of Labour clawing back the gap which has opened up in the polls, I think, with the right policies.'
Asked if he had faith in Mr Sarwar and his team, Mr Leonard added: 'Oh yes, of course I do.'
A spokesperson for Reform UK said: 'What happened last night in Clydebank was truly historic for Scottish politics.
'Polls have shown the rise in support for Reform UK, putting us in second place in some, but last night we witnessed real-life votes pilling up for us and against Labour.
'The Tories are done, Labour are irrelevant. If you want to beat the SNP across Scotland, only Reform UK is strong enough to do it.'
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