Tavish Scott: Crafty George Galloway will stir up the Commons

He is out of the Sheridan and Salmond political school where every moment is a media opportunity, and the accompanying rhetoric is wonderfully over the top. Only a supremely self-confident individual could conflate the overthrow of tyrannical regimes in the Middle East with a by-election win in a mature democracy.

But I am just jealous. There is a heck of a lot of skill in having those pithy few words that grab a moment in time. And without doubt Mr Galloway will enliven the House of Commons. It is difficult to know who will find him more annoying. He is Labour’s conscience, just as Tommy Sheridan caused mental torment for Labour MSPs over warrant sales legislation back in the Scottish Parliament’s first term.

Mr Galloway will make fun of Ed Miliband over Labour’s failure to back their words on attacking a cut in the top rate of tax by not voting against it. Similarly, he absolutely does not believe in political parties actually working together. There is nothing liberal in his political make-up, so the UK coalition can expect the full bombast.

I suspect the Tories will lose no sleep by being attacked from the far Left. He will back the Unite trade union in its dispute over fuel tanker driver hours, as he can cause further misery for Labour. And the SNP should not sit back and smirk. He will relish the opportunity to interfere on the constitution, and it will not be on Alex Salmond’s side. His ready soundbite may be just what the “No” campaign needs.

The predictable response to Mr Galloway’s win in Bradford came from Yvette Cooper on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show last weekend. She is Labour’s shadow home secretary and tipped to be the next leader when Mr Miliband accepts the inevitable. Ms Cooper did what all politicians do after losing: she declared that Labour would listen and learn. The leader would visit the constituency and talk to the good people of Bradford. He would study their concerns and recognise why his party was not seen as worth voting for.

Let me let you into a secret: they do not listen. Politicians of all parties take by-elections as a series of one-off opportunities. For the opposition they can give the government of the day a bloody nose. By-elections in Scotland are a moment to bloody Labour’s nose. When Labour’s Lindsay Roy held Glenrothes some years back, the SNP’s plans for Salmond, holed up in a hotel just outside the town, to make a triumphant entry had to be cancelled. He crept away with tail between legs and all was quickly forgotten.

By-election victors tend to have a short Westminster shelf life. All parties accept that the parliamentary seat invariably returns home at the subsequent general election. If Mr Galloway can buck that trend in 2015 it really will be something.

• Tavish Scott is Liberal Democrat MSP for Shetland