Nationalist Tide Surges Across Edinburgh and Scotland

Update: Alex Salmond's Scottish Nationalist Party have secured a historic victory winning 69 seats across Scotland. It means the SNP have a majority government (65 seats were needed for a majority). See Election 2011 Results

The Scottish National Party has taken all but one of Edinburgh's seats, in the same way that the natonalists appear to have swept across the whole of Scotland. Scottish Labour has lost a significant amount of ground as a result, the Scottish Liberal Democrats have taken a hammering, and the previously denuded Scottish Conservative Party has lost a key seat in former party leader David McLetchie's Pentland seat.

First Minister Alex Salmond, who in his constituency victory speech reiterated his plan to hold a referendum on independence, called the election results "historic". It certainly looks that way.

In Edinburgh alone, the SNP have won five seats, four of them gained since the last election. The one Edinburgh seat that remains non-SNP is that of veteran MP Malcolm Chisolm who managed to fend off SNP contender Shirley-Anne Somerville in Edinburgh Northern and Leith.

It's shaping up to be a similar story across the country even with all the constituency results still to be called and regional votes still being counted.

The regional results are expected to be called later today.

See Scottish Parliamentry Election 2011 results