Sarah Smith

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Nicola Sturgeon maintained throughout the election campaign that she did not want to see Boris Johnson returned to Downing Street as prime minister.

But the SNP leader knows that a majority Tory government in Westminster, while Scotland voted very differently, is the result most likely to advance her greatest ambition - independence for Scotland.

The party which dominates Scotland is now set on a constitutional collision course with the UK government.

The SNP's strongest argument is that Scotland and the rest of UK are moving in different political directions.

And that's been vividly demonstrated as England embraces the Tories whilst they have lost votes and lost seats north of the border.

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There are only two headlines that really matter from the SNP manifesto. The party wants to stop Brexit and have another referendum on Scottish independence.

But you can't make a manifesto out of just those two pledges, so there are plenty of other promises too.

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Ask voters in former Labour strongholds why they left the Labour Party, and they almost always reply: "I didn't - the party left me."

Some blame Jeremy Corbyn for taking the party too far to the left. Others blame Tony Blair for taking the country into the Iraq War.

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Ruth Davidson's unique selling point has always been that she doesn't look or sound like a Tory so she could persuade people who would never previously have considered voting Conservative to at least give them a hearing.

When the Tories fight election campaigns in Scotland they don't do it under the name of the "Scottish Conservative Party". They do it as "Ruth Davidson's Party". It's her picture that looms large on campaign leaflets. Any mention of being Conservatives is consigned to the small type.

Researchers have described a "perfect storm" that has allowed the HIV virus to spread so quickly in Glasgow. Homelessness is the key factor. Combined with a significant rise in the numbers of people injecting cocaine as well as heroin.

People who are sleeping rough can often be seen injecting drugs in public places in the city centre - sometimes sharing needles and other drug-injecting paraphernalia.

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PM Johnson said he had come to Scotland to renew the ties that bind the United Kingdom. Yet his trickiest task may be to try and restore the ties between him and the leadership of his Scottish party.

On Monday, during his first trip to Scotland as prime minister, Mr Johnson met the first minister of Scotland.

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The Scottish Conservative (and Unionist) party has enjoyed something of resurgence in recent years under the energetic leadership of Ruth Davidson.

The party's opponents are convinced that Boris Johnson as prime minister could put an end to all that - and could even put an end to the union between Scotland the rest of the UK.

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Nicola Sturgeon has no intention of going ahead with an independence referendum that has not been authorised by Westminster.

It may be very frustrating to her that the UK government need to give their consent to another vote, but she does accept that it is the reality.

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The Scottish parliament has just voted to stop the Brexit process by revoking article 50 unless there is an extension to allow for a second referendum on Brexit

"So what?," you might say. They can't legally force the UK government to do anything.

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Was it a stunt? Maybe. But it was a highly effective one.

The SNPs opponents may be complaining that they deliberately manufactured their parliamentary walkout but the SNP are very happy that their dramatic tactics have propelled them up to the top of tonight's news agenda.