Scottish Conservatives celebrate victory in Perth and Kinross by-election

The Scottish Conservatives have won the Almond and Earn seat on Perth and Kinross Council in yesterday’s by-election.

The by-election for the seat in the multi-member ward followed the death in January of Councillor Alan Jack.

Jack had originally stood as for the Conservatives, then served as an independent. The other two seats in the ward are held by the Conservatives and the SNP.

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Tory candidate Kathleen Baird won 48.5 per cent of the vote, an 18.4 per cent increase on the Conservatives’ 2012 result.

The SNP came second with 38.4 per cent, while Labour were third with 6.3 per cent of the vote.

Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson said: "This is a great result and all credit to our team on the ground who worked hard to deliver our message.

"This is just the latest in a string of by-elections where our vote has increased significantly.

"People across Scotland recognise that we need a strong opposition and the Scottish Conservatives are best placed to provide it.”