Perhaps it's because I have barely slept since, but it is hard to believe that Michael Shanks’ stunning victory in Rutherglen and Hamilton West was just over seven days ago. Already that result has set in stone the new foundations of Scottish politics, heralding a week which will change the country for good.

Michael’s win, achieved with the decency and modesty which were the hallmarks of his campaign, means his constituents will have proper representation from an MP and a party, Labour, that will never take them for granted. But the swing in the by-election, 20 per cent since the last election, was big enough to wipe the smirk of the SNP leadership’s faces on the night and will dim the lights at their forthcoming conference.

The defection of SNP MP Lisa Cameron to the Conservatives – with its ‘vote SNP, get Tory’ message – might be embarrassing but it is the Rutherglen result that’s put fear and snarling fury into the cornered SNP leadership. Repeated at a general election it would put Labour in play across 42 Scottish seats. To call it seismic is no understatement.

Analysis of polling data revealed at Labour’s conference puts the party in Scotland within touching distance of the SNP and Scottish constituencies could put Keir Starmer in Downing Street. Scottish voters now know they are at the forefront of the campaign to rid the UK of this bankrupt Tory government. But we know that we have to earn the trust and respect of communities to achieve that.

It will take hard work, dedication and, as Keir Starmer demonstrated on Tuesday, nerves of steel to get through. Centre stage of a major conference is a lonely place to be but he showed calm grit when glitter-bombed at the beginning of his speech. And he turned the stunt to his advantage, using to emphasise that Labour has moved on from protest and is on the path to power.

Everything he said about housing, the economy, working people’s aspirations, even the ferries to the Hebrides, all of it finds an echo in Scottish living rooms and voters neglected by the Tories and taken for granted by the SNP for years. In the speech, he showed that Scotland can be back at the heart of Britain.

As he put it himself, what is broken can be repaired, what is ruined can be rebuilt, wounds do heal. As Rutherglen and Hamilton West’s voters demonstrated, it’s possible to overcome these fading divisions. Of course, many on the doorstep had an honest disagreement with us about constitutional issues. But many also agreed that things need to change. That the economy, the NHS, our schools and councils need to be supported and renewed.

That win has enabled people, whatever way they voted previously, to see that there is a Scottish road to getting rid of a Tory goverment which does not involve separation. It is a vindication of Anas Sarwar’s strategy of focusing on the issues that matter to people, the health service, the cost of living and growing the economy, so that we can build a better Scotland. The events of the last week have lit up the road ahead, and shown Scots it is possible to take the path to power.

Jackie Baillie MSP is Scottish Labour’s deputy leader

Many nationalist voters understand why Scotland needs to help get the Tories out of power – Jackie Baillie

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