In Scotland, two defining events handed the SNP dominance of the political scene: the establishment of the Scottish Parliament and then, consequent to that, last year’s independence referendum. The referendum would not have been conceded without Salmond’s landslide triumph at the 2011 Holyrood elections, and having been conceded, the referendum changed everything. Former Labour (and Lib Dem) voters, having been persuaded over the duration of a very long and intense campaign that independence was, after all, the most important issue facing them, simply couldn’t bring themselves to stay loyal to those parties that had campaigned against it.