Ukip Sounds Warning Bells in Scotland Taking Seat Eyed By Salmond's SNP

Ukip's political earthquake may not have been felt as strongly in Scotland as elsewhere in Britain, but by winning its first seat in the country it still managed to delivered a shock to the ruling nationalists.

First minister, the SNP's Alex Salmond had put much store in Scotland bucking the anti-EU trend elsewhere and insisted that, with the independence referendum looming, Scottish voters had different concerns to those in England.

He had planned to increase his share of the vote enough to win an extra, third EU parliament seat and keep Ukip out of Scotland.

In the end, he failed in that task, his vote share at 28.9% was a fraction down on 2009 and Ukip won the seat he had been hoping for, blowing a small but not insignificant hole in his claims there were different concerns in Scotland.

Ukip victor David Coburn suggested the result meant that, just as elsewhere in Britain: "The Scots are fed-up to the back teeth with the usual suspects.

"This result says people in Scotland are as worried about the same things as everyone else in the rest of the United Kingdom.

"We all have the same problems that need to be resolved and, quite frankly, Mr Salmond seems to think that Scotland is so different from everywhere else, well, it's not."

Salmond, however, insisted that the victory for his party was important and showed it was as strong as ever after a period in government, when incumbents usually expect to be kicked.

And, turning to Ukip, he declared there was a huge difference between it gaining a single seat and coming fourth in Scotland and winning in the rest of the UK.

And with an eye firmly on the independence referendum on 18 September, he said: "Ukip's performance has shown the real and increasing threat to Scotland's place in the EU that comes from being part of the Westminster system.

Only a "yes" vote in the independence referendum would protect Scotland's place in the EU, he said.

None the less, with the SNP showing a small drop in its share of the vote, the Ukip win will worry Salmond who will find it more difficult to argue Scotland has bucked the anti-EU trend.

And with an independent Scotland's continuing membership of the EU a major issue in the campaign, it can only be a complicating factor for the nationalists.