Imagine Jim Murphy clings on to his East Renfrewshire seat and becomes a Westminster MP once again. But, all around him, Labour has fallen and the SNP have taken their seats.
Then the 2016 Holyrood elections come up and he wins an MSP seat.
What should Jim do?
If he resigns his Westminster seat, that will trigger a by-election. It'll be the only one in the country. EVERYONE will be there to either fight it or report it. More than likely, it too will fall to the SNP. This will reduce Labour's headcount at Westminster and increase the SNP's.
Numerically, it might not make too much difference but psychologically, it'd be a massive blow to Ed Miliband's minority Labour government and a rocket boost to the legitimacy of the SNP demanding Devo Max for Scotland.
That is why, if Jim Murphy does somehow manage to cling on to his Westminster seat, he can NEVER RESIGN IT.
And this morning, as reported by Wings over Scotland, Jim Murphy confirmed in an interview on BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland program that he would NOT resign his seat. That admission alone shows you just how much Labour fears the power of the SNP.
You can listen to the full interview on BBC News.
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