Council elections turnout increases to more than 46%

Turnout at the Scottish council elections rose by almost eight points to 46.9% nationally, official figures show.

The Electoral Management Board for Scotland data reveals an uplift from 39% when local government elections were last held in 2012.

The highest turnout was in East Renfrewshire at 57.8% while Glasgow recorded the lowest at 39%.

Willie Sullivan, director of the Electoral Reform Society Scotland, said while an overall increase should be welcomed, 2012 had been "a bottom-of-the-barrel election" with the lowest turnout since the 1970s.

"Unfortunately, there is little to cheer about this time, given that the majority of the public chose to stay at home," he said.

"With 2.3 million Scots not taking part and many hundreds of thousands not registered, local democracy is not out of the danger zone - these levels of engagement are warning signs that show our democracy still needs intensive care."

He added: "Our polling also shows that a significant majority of people actually want more representatives and at a more a local level.

"Many of them also want to be more directly involved in helping their council make decisions, whether though citizens' assemblies or other innovative ways of running our own places.

"It's now time for radical thinking about how to bring town halls across Scotland closer to voters."

The figures confirm the SNP first-preference vote share as 32.3% (unchanged from 2012) followed by the Conservatives on 25.3%, up 12 points.

The Tories out-polled their nationalist rivals on first-preference votes in 10 council areas including Aberdeenshire, Angus, Dumfries and Galloway, East Renfrewshire, Edinburgh, Moray, Perth and Kinross, Scottish Borders, South Ayrshire and Stirling.

Labour was down 11 points to 20.2% while the Greens and Liberal Democrats both increased their share to 4.1% and 6.8% respectively. First-preference votes for independent candidates fell slightly to 10.5%.

Derek Mackay, the SNP's campaign director for the General Election, said the results were "an excellent springboard" for the June 8 ballot.

He said: "The SNP has won the local elections emphatically, with more seats than any other party, an increased and higher share of the vote than any other party and as the largest party in more councils than any other party.

"Results across the UK show that now more than ever Scotland needs strong SNP voices to stand up to Theresa May, who is set to impose more cuts and put thousands of jobs at risk."

Labour's General Election campaign manager James Kelly said the figures were evidence of a "Sturgeon slump".

He said: "In 2015 the SNP secured half of the Scottish vote and these official figures show that has now plummeted by 18 points.

"It is clear that more and more people are getting sick and tired of the SNP's obsession with dividing us again."

A Scottish Conservative spokesman said: "These figures show clearly that, as we head to the General Election, the Scottish Conservatives are the only party capable of challenging the SNP all over Scotland.

"Our message is clear. We say No to a second referendum - so we can get government focused back on the things that matter."