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Coalition squeezes out Highland Labour groups
12:43am Saturday 12th May 2007
A coalition of the 17-member SNP group and 34 Independents is set to form the first administration to run Highland Council.
Reader comments (7)

SNP set to strike local council deals
12:01am Friday 11th May 2007
The SNP last night appeared to be strengthening its grip on Scotland's councils as it edged closer to striking coalition deals across the country.
Reader comments (33)

MSP urges Salmond to reverse closure of A&E
12:01am Friday 11th May 2007
A Labour MSP has called on the SNP to overturn her own party’s decision to downgrade Monklands General Hospital if it forms the next Scottish Executive.
Reader comments (33)

Gould hails McConnell’s ‘heroic’ failure in Holyrood elections
12:01am Friday 11th May 2007
A leading Labour polling guru has declared the party's Holyrood "heroic" campaign "showed Labour at its best". Even after they had lost, the Prime Minister and Chancellor Gordon Brown "still believed that something could be done"
Reader comments (24)

SNP deal to keep Labour out
12:01am Thursday 10th May 2007
The SNP has been discussing deals with a variety of parties to take charge of local councils across Scotland and keep Labour out of town halls.
Reader comments (83)

The signing-in … and a sign of things to come
12:01am Thursday 10th May 2007
One of the advantages of being an outgoing First Minister, it would appear, is that you have a lot more time on your hands.

Figures vindicate dual election date, executive claims
12:01am Thursday 10th May 2007
About 2% of ballot papers in last week’s council elections were spoiled, suggesting voters were not confused by the new system of proportional representation for local government.

Margo MacDonald in presiding role offer
12:01am Thursday 10th May 2007
The chances of Margo MacDonald becoming Presiding Officer when George Reid steps down next week became increasingly likely yesterday.

Police investigating brawl after Dunbartonshire count
12:01am Thursday 10th May 2007
Police are investigating allegations of assault after a brawl involving candidates and agents in last week’s elections. The row follows months of tension between Labour members and former colleagues purged from the party.
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Talking to Greens is a 'waste of time'
12:01am Wednesday 9th May 2007
An attempt by the Greens to break the impasse over Holyrood coalition negotiations by engaging the Liberal Democrats in direct talks without the SNP present, was rejected last night.
Reader comments (135)

Alexander under fire from MPs angry over poll count debacle
12:01am Wednesday 9th May 2007
Douglas Alexander, Scottish Secretary, yesterday struggled to defend the government's role in the Holyrood voting fiasco as he faced a call for his resignation from the SNP in the Commons.
Reader comments (61)

Key players for Nationalists
12:01am Wednesday 9th May 2007
John Swinney led the Scottish National Party through some of its most turbulent electoral times, but he is now at the heart of the team preparing to form a government.
Reader comments (17)

Independents and SNP form Argyll coalition
12:13am Wednesday 9th May 2007
SNP councillors have agreed to form an administration with a group of Independents in one of the first coalition deals since the election. Argyll and Bute Council will be run by a joint Independent and SNP group.
Reader comments (17)

Historic day as MSP takes oath in three languages
12:01am Wednesday 9th May 2007
The man who will go down in SNP folklore for securing an historic election victory will today take his Holyrood oath in Gaelic and Doric as well as English.
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Salmond: we’ll take a minority executiveSalmond: we’ll take a minority executive
12:53am Tue 8 May 07
Alex Salmond announced last night that the SNP was now working on preparations to go it alone at Holyrood as a minority administration, with limited support from the Greens.
Reader comments (293)

Prime Minister must ‘devise a way’ to handle SNP clashes
12:44am Tuesday 8th May 2007
Gordon Brown will have to devise new ways of handling disputes with Holyrood if the new administration is to be controlled by the Scottish National Party, according to constitutional experts.
Reader comments (23)

McConnell: leader in limbo faces difficult questions
12:45am Tuesday 8th May 2007
Analysis: Jack McConnell has been left twisting in the wind, remaining in office until voted out, uncertain about his party’s future, the pace of events dictated by his political adversary.
Reader comments (34)

Sheridan consulted over challenge to ballot fiasco
12:47am Tuesday 8th May 2007
Tommy Sheridan and Allan Wilson have held talks in the wake of the election fiasco which saw both of them lose their seats at Holyrood.
Reader comments (15)

Problem of Reid’s successor
12:49am Tuesday 8th May 2007
With only a day to go before the new crop of MSPs are supposed to elect a Presiding Officer at Holyrood to succeed George Reid, a strong candidate for the post has yet to emerge.
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Coalition crisis as LibDems reject bid from SNP
12:01am Monday 7th May 2007
Prospects of a deal between the Scottish National Party leader and the LibDems stalled last night, after the smaller party flatly refused to give ground in its opposition to an independence referendum.
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Lawyers prepare landmark case over lost votesLawyers prepare landmark case over lost votes
12:58am Mon 7 May 07
Thousands of people could be contacted and asked which way they meant to vote in last week's election under a landmark legal challenge.
Reader comments (122)

Why maths and magic number of 65 will decide power
12:29am Monday 7th May 2007
Analysis: There's been much talk of moral authority. But in the horse-trading now at play in deciding the future of Scottish government, morality is the least of their concerns. After the eye-wateringly tight results on Friday, democracy is about something much simpler - arithmetic.
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First sitting may be hit by lack of Presiding Officer
12:06am Monday 7th May 2007
The Scottish Parliament may be forced to suspend its first sitting of the new session this week because coalition negotiations could prevent new candidates as Presiding Officer from coming forward.
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Labour stunned by Scott’s claim parties cannot form executive
12:31am Monday 7th May 2007
The Labour Party was left stunned yesterday by Tavish Scott's claim the parties could not form the next Scottish Executive.
Reader comments (39)

Scotland could look to New Zealand as a model
12:30am Monday 7th May 2007
Government in Scotland is about to get much more complicated. Where the past two administrations have seen straightforward coalition between two parties, it is unlikely the next four years will see anything so simple.
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MSP wants polling on separate days
12:04am Monday 7th May 2007
The Scottish Parliament should take urgent steps to make sure future council elections are held on a different day from Holyrood polls, according to a member of the commission set up to advise on the voting system.
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SNP biggest party in councils after Labour’s hold crumbles
12:03am Monday 7th May 2007
The SNP has emerged as the biggest party in local government as Labour citadels across the country fell.
Reader comments (6)

Grasping the thistle
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Alex Salmond yesterday staked his claim to become Scotland’s next First Minister as the SNP became the largest party at Holyrood. The historic achievement ended 50 years of Labour dominance in Scotland.
Reader comments (204)

Salmond shows the way for Nationalist double whammy
12:43am Saturday 5th May 2007
North-east Scotland: The SNP captured two new seats in north-east Scotland to hold six of the nine in the area but the statistics reveal a major swing to the party.

Brown’s home patch can no longer be counted on
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Mid-Scotland and Fife:The SNP gave Labour a bloody nose in Chancellor Gordon Brown’s home patch of Mid Scotland and Fife with a series of impressive wins.

Party suffers a near total eclipse of the heartland
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Lothians: Labour suffered a heartlands attack last night as the SNP snatched seats in the former stalwart communities of West Lothian and Musselburgh.

Labour left out in the cold by rout in north constituencies
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Highlands & Islands: The Labour Party no longer represents any Holyrood or Westminster parliamentary constituency in the Highlands and Islands following the SNP’s dramatic capture of the Western Isles yesterday.

Who's to blame when everyone involved says it’s not their fault?
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
It was a guddle, yes. But whose guddle? Scotland’s shambolic elections sparked widespread anger yesterday as counts were delayed and thousands of ballot papers spoiled.
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Goldie ‘very proud’ of Tory campaign
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Conservatives: Annabel Goldie yesterday insisted she was “very proud” of the Conservatives’ election campaign, despite the number of seats the party holds at Holyrood falling.

Salmond sets out to woo the nation after narrow victory
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Alex Salmond in his moment of victory last night began to talk about how the SNP must begin to win over those who had not supported the party.

McConnell’s future hangs in balance
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
The future for Mr McConnell and the Scottish Labour party is uncertain. Last night, Labour was putting on a brave face. Will he still be in post once the days, if not the weeks, of horse-trading to establish a governing party at Holyrood have been endured?
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The wipeout never came ... but Alex had his day
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Alex Salmond called it a “50-year storm”. Out of a right bourach of missing postal ballots the victor of Gordon whipped up his ultimate dream.

Shocked Greens demand to see ballots
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Greens: The Green Party yesterday demanded to see spoiled ballot papers across Scotland after their tally of MSPs was cut from seven to two.

Sheridan bows out with a blast at ‘electoral farce’
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Solidarity: He has always been the outsider of Scottish politics. But yesterday, for the first time in 15 years, Tommy Sheridan reconciled himself to time away from the fray of elected life, even if only for the foreseeable future.

Hospital campaigners fail to upset the established players
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Independents: She was the toast of the last Holyrood elections, but retired GP Dr Jean Turner had to settle for third place yesterday.

Labour MP and CPA candidate reported
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
John Robertson, Labour MP for Anniesland, has been reported to the procurator-fiscal following ugly scenes which marred Glasgow’s election counts.

River City continues to run red
12:14am Saturday 5th May 2007
Labour managed to retain control of Scotland’s biggest local authority. For decades, the city has been dominated by Labour, with the opposition parties amounting to little more than a flea on the backside of an elephant.

Labour’s bastion remains intact
12:13am Saturday 5th May 2007
Labour lost overall control of one of the councils in its heartlands yesterday while still emerging as the biggest party.

Still all to play for as capital taken by LibDems
12:10am Saturday 5th May 2007
Council Results: There were capital gains for the Liberal Democrats yesterday as they emerged the biggest party in Edinburgh City Council.

Two-horse race leaves minor parties struggling to cross the finishing line
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Analysis: It was cast as a close-fought two-horse race, as if the other parties were also-rans. The results suggest that Scottish voters backed both horses and the also-rans struggled to cross the finishing line.

Labour biggest casualty as fallout from new voting system grows
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Scots Councils: Labour's grip on local politics has loosened significantly after the party lost overall control of all but three of the councils it previously dominated and the SNP emerged as the major beneficiary of the new voting system.

Jubilant Conservatives claim a ‘massive breakthrough’ after capturing 875 seats
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
England: Conservative high command last night claimed “a massive breakthrough” in England after the Tories achieved their largest number of councillors since 1978.

Coalition on cards as Morgan cannot go it alone
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Wales: The prospect of a return to a Labour-Liberal Democrat coalition appeared on the cards last night after Rhodri Morgan, the First Minister, admitted his party did not have enough seats to govern alone.

Historic day for SNP with first Asian elected to Holyrood
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
The slogan says One Nation, Many Cultures, and the election of the SNP’s Bashir Ahmad to Holyrood means the Scottish Parliament has taken a small step towards reflecting that.

Candidates who will not return to the corridors of power
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
SNP victories meant two of the most familiar Labour figures around the corridors of Holyrood will be missing when parliament reconvenes next week.

Craigie fights off fierce SNP challenge in vital seat
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Labour yesterday boasted some successes on one of the most extraordinary days in the history of the Scottish Parliament.

LibDems fall short of making Stephen a kingmaker
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
The LibDems suffered several sharp shocks in their constituency results yesterday, as previously safe seats fell to Tories and the SNP.

Nation greets new First Minister: Mr Torn Face (Rejected Ballot)
12:01am Saturday 5th May 2007
Hugh MacDonald's TV Watch: Scotland's morning sunshine on Thursday was worthy of Florida. Unfortunately, so was the subsequent election.

Chaos at the counts mars a  night of success for the SNP Chaos at the counts mars a night of success for the SNP
12:48am Fri 4 May 07
Thousands of rejected ballot papers in the Holyrood elections this morning sparked calls for an inquiry, as the SNP registered a surge in a mixed picture across the country.
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Double triumph for SNP leaders as they take Govan and Gordon
12:11am Friday 4th May 2007
The SNP’S two leading lights came through tough contests to win their constituencies, with the party leader Alex Salmond triumphing in Gordon and his deputy Nicola Sturgeon finally prevailing in Glasgow Govan.
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Labour ministers celebrate return, even as outcome remains uncertain
12:44am Friday 4th May 2007
Ministers in the last Labour-led administration were this morning celebrating victory after receiving confirmation of their return to Holyrood.
Reader comments (8)

Tories’ hopes of revival premature
12:22am Friday 4th May 2007
The Conservatives suffered a setback and surprise gain in the South of Scotland this morning, failing to take their top target, holding their most marginal constituency and winning a Borders seat from the Lib Dems.
Reader comments (4)

Night of mixed fortunes as LibDems fail to make gains
12:20am Friday 4th May 2007
The LibDems had a disappointing night of results. Although they gained Dunfermline West from Labour, they lost Gordon to Alex Salmond and both their Borders seats were in doubt.
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High number of spoiled papers puts spotlight on new systemHigh number of spoiled papers puts spotlight on new system
12:12am Fri 4 May 07
Voter confusion was blamed for a massive increase in the number of rejected ballot papers. As many as 100,000 papers were rejected by returning officers – prompting calls for an urgent investigation.
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Fog grounds Western Isles count
12:38am Friday 4th May 2007
The results of one of the key election battlegrounds were last night delayed by fog, which prevented a helicopter collecting ballot boxes from parts of the Outer Hebrides.

Greens confident of hitting double figures in Holyrood
12:37am Friday 4th May 2007
The fate of Scotland's minority parties remained unclear this morning as they waited for the results of the regional votes.
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SNP make breakthrough in Dundee West
12:36am Friday 4th May 2007
The SNP made their first breakthrough of the night by capturing Dundee West from Labour with a swing of more than 6%.
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Polling station is attacked by man wielding golf club
12:47am Friday 4th May 2007
Police arrested a man last night after he entered a polling station in Edinburgh waving a golf club. Polling was suspended for a short time as the man used the club to threaten staff.

Officials visit voters over ballot chaos
12:35am Friday 4th May 2007
Two ward elections to Argyll and Bute Council were plunged into chaos last night as poll officers were forced to drive to the homes of residents to get them to vote again following a ballot mix-up.

Catholic heads face discipline over warning against Greens
12:05am Friday 4th May 2007
Headteachers at Catholic schools in Glasgow and North Lanarkshire face possible disciplinary action over letters sent out to parents urging them not to vote for the Scottish Green Party.
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Tributes pour in after death of former first lady of Glasgow
12:19am Friday 4th May 2007
A former first lady of Glasgow and wife of an aspiring Holyrood candidate died as the polls opened yesterday.
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Defeats in key seats, but still a victorious evening
12:58am Friday 4th May 2007
The Nationalist charge into the small hours may have been spearheaded by Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon, but the party enjoyed significant successes elsewhere.
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How the First Minister’s safe seat became a battleground
12:38am Friday 4th May 2007
Jack McConnell was last night returned as MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw – but with a reduced majority. Mr McConnell polled 12,574 votes, 5938 ahead of the SNP candidate, Marion Fellows.
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From a £500,000 cheque to a visit from London
12:37am Friday 4th May 2007
Analysis: Mr Blair and Mr Brown were big enough political beasts to take on Mr Salmond. That they came north, carrying the baggage of the Iraq war, cash-for-peerages, factionalism and mid-term blues was a risk Labour’s strategists reckoned they had to take.
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Labour in for ‘horrible night’ in England
12:19am Friday 4th May 2007
Labour was in for a “horrible night”, Iain Duncan Smith, the former Conservative leader, predicted as the first results for English councils came through in the early hours.

Leaders take to the polls as a nation decides
12:36am Friday 4th May 2007
It is the final image which fades in the memory before the first pictures of celebration are burnt indelibly into the national psyche. Scotland's prospective first ministers, voting by example.
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Low turnouts a trend since the demise of tribal politics
12:04am Friday 4th May 2007
Alex Salmond and Jack McConnell both predicted that voter turnout in this election would be far higher this year than it was four years ago.

Undecided 20% hold key to victory in electionUndecided 20% hold key to victory in election
12:22am Thu 3 May 07
More than two million Scots are expected to vote today in the closest fought election for a generation.
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Parties make late bid to win over the undecidedParties make late bid to win over the undecided
12:54am Thu 3 May 07
A final push for votes yesterday came down to core messages from the party leaders on the last day of the Scottish election campaign.
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No cosy deals, SNP warns councillors
12:05am Thursday 3rd May 2007
Nationalist councillors have been warned not to be rushed into coalition deals simply to secure extra pay for senior posts, as party headquarters seeks to keep control of post-election horse-trading.
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Union Jack gets on soapbox to boost Labour’s flagging support
12:56am Thursday 3rd May 2007
Election Sketch: If you’re looking for colour in the final day of a campaign, don’t look to John Major. As Sir Nicholas Fairbairn once remarked, the former prime minister was a man so bland, to describe him as grey was an insult to porridge.
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Stephen’s final bid to block Salmond win
12:56am Thursday 3rd May 2007
Nicol Stephen rode into Alex Salmond's backyard yesterday in a determined bid to prevent what might be his finest hour, making a final foray into Gordon to try to ensure the SNP leader is not elected.
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Word on the street: the issues that matter most to youWord on the street: the issues that matter most to you
12:05am Thu 3 May 07
Election Focus: Our reporters took to the streets around Scotland to ask the public one question: what, for you, is the main issue? Here's what they found...
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Nationalists predict end of Labour’s 50-year stranglehold
12:07am Thursday 3rd May 2007
Labour's 50-year stranglehold on Scotland will end today when the voters go to the polls, SNP leader Alex Salmond claimed during a final day of campaigning yesterday.
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Canadians should look out for Scottish Election
1:48pm Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Carved in the stone of the outside wall of the Scottish Parliament building, is "Work as if you lived in the early days of a better nation" with the quotation attributed to the great contemporary Scottish writer Alasdair Gray.

Former shipbuilding heartland to steer nation’s course
12:59am Thursday 3rd May 2007
And so after 35 days of insults and injuries, of polls and counter polls, and one or two policy announcements along the way, it all boils down to two words: Glasgow Govan.
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Upbeat Goldie claims policies appeal to electorateUpbeat Goldie claims policies appeal to electorate
12:57am Thu 3 May 07
Tories yesterday insisted that their refusal to consider any coalition deals at Holyrood had not rendered them a political irrelevance as voters go to the polls.
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Chancellor plays loyalty card as he urges faithful ‘to come home’
12:55am Thursday 3rd May 2007
Gordon Brown yesterday invoked the memory of John Smith, the late Labour leader, as he mounted a last-ditch attempt to get his party's grassroots support out.
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Wall-to-wall coverage you just can’t miss
12:08am Thursday 3rd May 2007
What will be your own Portillo moment tonight? Perhaps you dislike SNP leader Alex Salmond, so you long for a pratfall in Gordon. Or you are not a fan of the current state of the NHS and would like to see Health Minister Andy Kerr toppled in East Kilbride.

Salmond challenges Brown to work with SNP administration
12:23am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Alex Salmond yesterday challenged Gordon Brown to work with an SNP government, if the Nationalist leader becomes First Minister after tomorrow's election.
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Blair says Chancellor will be the next Prime MinisterBlair says Chancellor will be the next Prime Minister
12:37am Wed 2 May 07
Tony Blair paid his farewell visit as Prime Minister to Scotland yesterday with a heartfelt plea in defence of the Union and an acknowledgement that he would be succeeded by Gordon Brown.
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Brown ready to step into No 10 on June 30
12:43am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Gordon Brown will succeed Tony Blair on June 30 if, as expected, he wins the overwhelming endorsement of his parliamentary colleagues, the trade unions and Labour party members to become leader.
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McConnell admits negative campaign
12:26am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Jack McConnell last night admitted that the Labour Party had run a "negative" election campaign.
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Blair heading for a ‘kicking’, say Nationalists
12:25am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Scotland will tomorrow give Tony Blair "one hell of a kicking" the SNP boasted yesterday but the Nationalists were swiftly condemned by Labour for being triumphalist and displaying an "ugly arrogance" by taking Scottish voters for granted.
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Grey area: why age concerns us allGrey area: why age concerns us all
12:01am Wed 2 May 07
Election Focus: Free care for pensioners was a pioneering policy. Helen Puttick asks how well it has translated into action – and what is next on the political agenda for our senior citizens?
Reader comments (2)

‘I think the image of us is out of date’
12:01am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Jeanette Pieper does not mind being classified as an older person, although she is many other things first.
Reader comments (6)

Goldie promises to be tough on crime
12:45am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Annabel Goldie, Scottish Conservatives' leader, yesterday consolidated her party's tough stance on crime by pledging to end the early release of prisoners.
Reader comments (2)

Blair marks Union amid fears of Labour dominance dissolving
12:42am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
The air should have dripped heavy with history. Three hundred years to the day after Scottish government moved to London and 10 years after he sparked a seismic electoral shift in British politics, Tony Blair was saying his farewell to the campaign trail in Scotland.
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Solidarity back to basics
12:28am Wednesday 2nd May 2007
Yesterday, Tommy Sheridan, leader of the Solidarity party, reiterated the theme that has formed the cornerstone of his political career – wealth redistribution.
Reader comments (2)

Complaints after postal ballot delays leave some unable to vote
12:27am Tuesday 1st May 2007
A delay in issuing postal ballots was having a knock-on effect across Scotland last night as voters complained they had been denied the right to take part in the Holyrood election.
Reader comments (63)

Brown in call for support to ‘come home’
12:40am Tuesday 1st May 2007
Gordon Brown yesterday urged traditional Labour voters to "come home" as he mounted a late effort to get the party's grassroots support out on Thursday.
Reader comments (165)

Any voter will do as Dave comes to town …
12:01am Tuesday 1st May 2007
It was Buchanan Street karma. At last, the Hare Krishna scourge and the chuggers receiving a dose of their own medicine. That's Dave for you. He knows that north of Berwick, Tories can't be choosers.
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War on drugs ‘is wrong’
12:01am Tuesday 1st May 2007
A former health minister claimed yesterday that “war on drugs” was the wrong approach to the issue. Susan Deacon has been involved in major studies of the drugs issue since she returned to the back benches.
Reader comments (5)

Election shows politics runs in the family
12:43am Tuesday 1st May 2007
Scottish politics is sometimes seen as a village, but the evidence from candidates standing for election this Thursday suggests it is becoming more of a family affair.
Reader comments (8)

Christian parties in clash
12:40am Tuesday 1st May 2007
The two Christian parties contesting the Holyrood elections have clashed over a letter to voters that one side claims is intended to mislead its supporters into thinking it has given up campaigning.
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