The Honourable Lady Mark's efforts notwithstanding, we lost our deposit. This is unsurprising, given that (aside from the question of independence) the SNP are pretty much a clone of us, even down to party colours. It's a bit worrying to be beaten by the Tories in Scotland, which is a bit like losing to the BNP in Brixton, but hopefully the fact that they have lost their third safest seat in Scotland will send a message to New Labour. How much longer can Gordon bury his head in the sand?

The reason main for the Oh shit in the title, though, is the spectre of Scottish independence. The Scots hate the Tories, and we're heading for a Tory government next time without a shadow of a doubt. The Scots will therefore make a BIG noise. The Tories will not put up TOO big a fight against Scottish independence, because most of the constraints on Tory power come from North of the border. I honestly can see our ancient union rent asunder in the not-too-distant future.

The thing is, I have no doubt that Scottish independence might be an alluring prospect for the Scots, although it would cause enormous upheaval for them and might not leave them as well off as they'd like... If I were Scottish, I know that I would seriously consider the idea that freedom would be worth being a bit financially worse off. The problem is that without Scotland the political landscape of the UK suddenly becomes incredibly unbalanced. Now, on the plus side, given the current projections for what will happen at the next election, this would probably leave us as the official opposition. But on the down side, the Tories would have SUCH a huge majority that there would be no prospect of any effective opposition and no fetters on the repulsive Dorries.

Is it too late for Yorkshire to apply for the border to be moved so that we're in Scotland? I men, William Wallace DID conquer us at one point...