Jeremy Corbyn could have been Prime Minister if it wasn’t for Scotland

Missed chance: Jeremy Corbyn
REUTERS
Robin de Peyer10 June 2017
WEST END FINAL

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Jeremy Corbyn could have been Britain’s next Prime Minister – if it wasn’t for the performance of the Conservatives in Scotland.

Theresa May returned to Downing Street and will govern with support from Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party after a disastrous election night for the PM saw her party lose its Commons majority.

But north of the border the Tories performed strongly under the leadership of Ruth Davidson, winning 12 new seats as the Scottish National Party lost ground.

On a humiliating night for the Prime Minister the Tories slipped from a total of 331 seats to 318, while Labour gained 32 seats to reach 262.

Strong performance: Ruth Davidson (Jane Barlow/PA )
Jane Barlow/PA

Without the 14 seats won by the Scottish Conservatives, Mrs May’s party would have been languishing on just 305 seats.

Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the SNP, who are likely to have mopped up the votes between them, would have outnumbered the Tories and are likely to have defeated the PM in a Queen’s Speech vote, paving the way for a coalition led by Mr Corbyn.

Ms Davidson has already begun wielding her influence by warning Theresa May not to pursue a “closed Brexit”.

Scotland voted to remain in the EU, and Ms Davidson has called for a softer approach to the withdrawal process.

“It is incumbent on us to listen to other parties in Parliament, and people outside it, about the best way forward.

"It is the policy of both the Conservative party and the UK Labour party to respect the Brexit referendum result. "That means we are leaving the European Union. We must leave the Common Fisheries Policy.

"At the same time we must in my view seek to deliver an open Brexit, not a closed one, which puts our country’s economic growth first."

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