Scottish LibDems leader Scott resigns

Tavish Scott has resigned as leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats after a “disastrous” result for the party in the Scottish Parliament elections.The Scottish Liberal Democrats suffered a heavy defeat in the Holyrood election, losing deposits after 25 constituency candidates failed to gain 5% of the vote. The Scottish Parliament will have just five LibDem MSPs, with no constituency seats on the mainland. They had 16 MSPs in the previous parliament. Scott, who was elected leader of the party in August 2008, said: “I want to announce that I am resigning the leadership of the Scottish Liberal Democrats with immediate effect.“Thursday’s Scottish general election result was disastrous and I must and do take responsibility for the verdict of the electorate. “The party needs a new direction, new thinking and new leadership to win back the trust of the Scottish people. I am honoured to serve as Shetland’s MSP in this Parliament.”Scott held on to Shetland with a reduced vote share, while Liam McArthur took Orkney with 37.5% of the vote. The Liberal Democrat leader, Deputy Prime Minster Nick Clegg, said: “I was very sad to hear of Tavish’s decision.“He has been an excellent and energetic leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats at an extremely difficult time, as well as a good friend and colleague. I’m sure he would have done a brilliant job leading the fight back for the LibDems in Scotland but I fully respect his decision.”