General election 2010: Labour win back Glasgow East
By Sam Dale
Labour has overturned their shock by-election defeat in 2008 with an emphatic victory over the SNP in Glasgow East.
The by-election rocked Gordon Brown after the 10p tax reversal two years ago but Margaret Curran has now been elected with a 12,000 majority.
Ms Curran won 61.6% of the vote compared to 24.7% for outgoing MP John Mason, who won an enormous 26% swing in 2008.
However, the by-election result came at a time when Labour’s opinion poll ratings were very low and perhaps represented a protest vote at the government.
Post-war slum clearances and the erection of a large number of tenement buildings in this seat have left a community which suffers from some serious social problems.
Drug abuse, gang related violence and economic hardship are all realities of everyday life for the population.
