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The Scottish mafia, Scottish Labour mafia, tartan mafia, Scottish Raj, or Caledonian mafia is a term used in the politics of England from the mid-1960s, although fell out of use after the initial collapse in the number of Scottish Labour MPs at the 2015 general election, but due to the resurgence in the number of Scottish Labour MPs at the 2024 general election, the term is expected to make a political revival.

Political use

This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: the text doesn't reflect the developments in 2024. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (July 2024)

The term is used in politics to pejoratively refer to a group of Scottish Labour Party politicians and broadcasters who are believed to have undue influence over the governance of England, such as the constitutional arrangement allowing Scottish MPs to vote on English matters, but, by convention, not the other way around. The term is occasionally used in the UK press and in parliamentary debates.

Since the mid-1960s, the Conservatives have suffered from declining popularity amongst Scottish voters. In the 1999 Scottish Parliament election, the Conservatives won only 18 of 129 seats. That number has stayed relatively steady, with the party winning only 15 seats in the most recent election, making it the third largest party in Scottish politics after the Scottish National Party and Labour. In UK general elections, the Conservatives have gone from a high point of being the only party to carry both a majority of votes and seats in Scotland in 1955 to a complete wipeout, winning no seats in 1997 though in 2001 there had been a single Conservative MP in Scotland, until 12 were elected in 2017.

With Labour being the sole unionist party with broad support in Scotland, the ranks of Scots among Labour politicians have over a period of four or five decades become significant. Thus, the ranks of the so-called Scottish mafia supplied the last two Labour prime ministers, Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, as well as their predecessor as head of the Labour party, John Smith.

The influential position of Scots in the Labour Party is part of the plot of the television comedy The Thick of It, in which the character of the prime minister's director of communications (or, as he is referred to by other characters, the "enforcer"), Malcolm Tucker, is portrayed as an aggressive, foul-mouthed Scotsman. Many of the members of Tucker's staff, such as his deputy, Jamie MacDonald, are also belligerent Scotsmen.

In January 2024, with Labour likely to return to power at the 2024 general election, combined with the SNP's decline in the polls in Scotland. Labour's Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray, claimed that Scottish Labour MPs will run Westminster after the election and would be "a major percentage" in an administration led by Keir Starmer which would give them "massive influence". A month later at the Scottish Labour Conference in Glasgow. The Leader of the Scottish Labour Party, Anas Sarwar, in his conference speech claimed that he want to send a government where they send Scottish Labour MPs who will "sit in government round the table and help make decisions." Such comments could lead to the political revival of the term.

Cabinet Ministers

The so-called Scottish mafia consists of two generations, the first generation are those who were MPs prior to the collapse of Scottish Labour at the 2015 general election and served under the 1997–2010 Labour Government, the second generation are mostly those who are elected as MPs at the 2024 general election in the Scottish Labour revival. Scots who were first elected as Labour MPs including those in non-Scottish constituencies during the intermediate period also became part of the second generation.

First generation

Second generation

Other uses

The term has also been applied to the group of Scottish footballers who won several domestic and European honours in the 1960s and 70s while playing for the English first division club Leeds United; namely goalkeeper David Harvey (1965–1980, 1982–1984), defender Gordon McQueen (1972–1978), midfielder Billy Bremner (1959–1976)), left winger Eddie Gray (1965–1983), right winger Peter Lorimer (1963–1979, 1983–1986) and striker Joe Jordan (1970–1978).

In the city of Dunedin New Zealand the "Tartan Mafia" is used to describe the group of aging businessmen who are purported to run the city from behind the scenes. The business community do not disown this usage.

See also

• West Lothian question
• Devolved English parliament

Notes

1. Under the Scotland Act 1998, Westminster retains its sovereignty over the Scottish Parliament, but do not typically vote on devolved matters.

References

1. Allardyce, Jason (24 May 2009). "Don and out". The Sunday Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
2. "Cosa Scotia". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
3. Johnson, Boris (30 November 2009). "A healthy, wealthy London is the best medicine for Scotland's ills". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
4. Akbar, Arifa (14 March 2005). "Now Paxman rails against the 'Scottish Raj'". The Independent. Retrieved 28 March 2020.
5. Jesse Armstrong; Armando Iannucci; Simon Blackwell (20 September 2007). The thick of it: the scripts. Hodder & Stoughton. p. 128. ISBN 9780340937068.
6. Jack, Ian (15 July 2006). "Border disputes". The Guardian. Guardian Newspapers Limited. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
7. Johnson, Boris (31 August 2006). "There's nothing national about the National Health". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 9 March 2007. Retrieved 2 October 2006.
8. "Lords Hansard text for 12 Feb 2004 (240212-24)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). House of Lords. 12 February 2004. col. GC571. Archived from the original on 29 June 2022.
9. "Lords Hansard text for 7 Jul 1997 (170707-31)". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). House of Lords. 7 July 1977. col. 523. Archived from the original on 29 June 2022.
10. Quinn, Andrew (12 January 2024). "Scottish Labour MPs 'will run Westminster' after general election, claims Ian Murray". The Daily Record. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
11. McCool, Mary (16 February 2024). "Labour 'will put Scotland at heart of government' - Anas Sarwar". BBC News. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
12. Joe Jordan, STV, 19 April 2010
13. "Tales of the Tartan Mafia". Archived from the original on 8 February 2013. Retrieved 10 July 2013.

• Anti-Scottish sentiment
• Politics of Scotland
• Scottish Labour
• England–Scotland relations