The decline of the Conservative party in Scotland has more do to with its own failings than the rise of the SNP.

Last May saw an unprecedented victory by the Scottish National Party (SNP in Scotland, and a rout for the Conservatives. While many commentators attribute the Conservative’s decline in Scotland to the harsh economic policies seen in the Thatcher years, the IPPR’s Nick Pearce argues that the decline of Scottish Conservatism began in the 1960s when it failed to adapt to changing social and economic circumstances in Scotland.