Hands off our Ruth

At last, there is light in the north. The long Scottish Tory winter has finally ended, giving way to the freshest spring imaginable. Just ten days ago, leading Scottish Tories believed they might win half a dozen seats at the general election. Even on election night they struggled to accept the reality of what was happening. ‘Ayr? Really?’ But they did win Ayr. And Stirling. And Angus. And Gordon. And Moray.

This was emphatically not Theresa May’s victory. It was Ruth Davidson’s. Now, in the aftermath of this Ruthquake, a question arises: if Ruth can save the Scottish Tories, couldn’t she do something similar south of the border? Every newspaper has carried a version of this fantasy. It shows once again that there’s nothing so powerful as wishful thinking.

Although Jeremy Corbyn helped Labour to a better-than-expected result, this was not a contest between right and left in Scotland. It was, once again, nationalist vs unionist.