Labour sweep to general election victory as Tories and SNP collapse

First Minister John Swinney pledged a period of “soul searching” after what he described as a “very poor” performance for the SNP.

Outgoing Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross also failed in his bid to return to Westminster, losing out to the SNP.

Labour's victory in Scotland came on a night when the UK's political map was redrawn, with Labour winning a majority of more than 400 MPs. 

At a victory rally in London, Sir Keir Starmer - due to become the country's next Prime Minister - said Britain can now “get its future back”.

He told jubilant activists “We did it”, adding: “Change begins now.”

Labour's victory marks a spectacular turnaround since 2019, when Boris Johnson won an 80-seat Conservative majority and Labour suffered its worst result since 1935.

Speaking to journalists, Anas Sarwar said he was “absolutely delighted” with his party’s performance and thanked the people of Scotland for “putting their faith and trust in the Scottish Labour Party”.

“I understand their desire for change, I know there’ll be a huge sigh of relief that we finally ended 14 years of total chaos and failure,” he said.

(PA Graphics)

The Scottish Labour leader conceded it would “not be an easy road” for a Labour government but the party would “get to work straight away”.

The SNP saw dozens of MPs lose their seats and its majority in Scotland after more than a decade of dominance. 

“It’s a very poor result for the SNP tonight,” John Swinney told the BBC.

“There will have to be a lot of soul searching as a party as a consequence of these results that have come in tonight.”

Mr Swinney said the SNP has to be “better at governing on behalf of the people of Scotland”, adding that the party was not “winning the argument” on Scottish independence.

Scottish First Minister and SNP leader John Swinney looks at his phone at Ice Hall in the Dewars Centre, Perth, during the count (Image: (Jane Barlow/PA))

He said: “Although we’re going to have a bad election result tonight, I still believe in my head and in my heart that Scotland will be better off as an independent country.

“But we’re obviously not winning that argument with the public to make that a priority at this moment, so we’ve got to think long and hard about how we address that question and I don’t think that in the early hours of the morning after a General Election I can give you the definitive answer to what we do in that circumstance.”

READ MORE: Clean sweep for Labour in Glasgow: SNP lose all six seats

READ MORE: Douglas Ross fails in bid to win seat as Reform UK splits vote

But Mr Sarwar said the First Minister “has got a lot of reflecting to do on a lot of things” after the party’s dismal performance.

“He spent the entire six weeks attacking the Labour Party because it seems the only person more depressed at the thought of the Tory Government ending and the Labour government was John Swinney and the SNP,” he said.

“You can see the verdict of the Scottish people, both to his approach in this election campaign but also the SNP’s approach to Government, where they have failed far too many people.”

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross at P&J Live arena in Aberdeen, during the count (Image: (Michal Wachucik/PA))

Mr Ross sought election to the Aberdeenshire North and Moray East seat in place of former MP David Duguid, who was barred from standing by party bosses due to ill health.

His decision – which reversed an announcement he would not seek re-election to Westminster – was met with criticism from opponents and some within his own party.

Speaking to the BBC, the party leader suggested the Reform UK vote had handed the SNP the seat.

The party’s candidate Jo Hart came third with 5,562 votes, while Mr Ross trailed his SNP rival by less than 1,000.

Scottish Green co-leader Patrick Harvie thanked people who voted for his party.

“We have established our party as the third political force in Glasgow and have broken new ground across the country,” he said.

“These results are an important springboard for the Scottish Greens and show that we are well on track for big gains as we approach the next Scottish election in 2026 and the local elections in 2027.”