Columnist Gregor Gall explains why a series of Scottish election Groundhog Days – a tedious, repetitive cycle of events – lies ahead of us

It’s not exactly breaking news but the SNP is on course to not only be the party with the most members of the Scottish Parliament after the election on May 7 next year but also form the next Scottish Government. This will mark the beginning of a third decade in office for the SNP. What is not quite so well appreciated is that the SNP is on course to do so with its lowest share of the vote since 2007, when it formed a (minority) government for the first time.

The continuation of SNP governance on such a low score will merely emphasis the reality that society in Scotland is caught in the clutches of a stasis, neither able to move backwards nor forwards but just crab-like crawl sideways.

Of course, going back would not be welcomed in whatever shape that might take. But equally frustrating is the lack of movement forward, where much is promised but so little in the way of palpable, manifest change is actually achieved.

Read more by Gregor Gall

Let’s just first look at the numbers. Of course, a health warning is first in order. Polling only gives us a glimpse of how a limited number of people – usually around 1,000 citizens – would vote if an election was hypothetically "held........

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