Scottish Labour leader could lose own seat, poll finds

LONDON (Reuters) - The leader of the opposition Labour Party's Scottish arm could lose his own parliamentary seat to the Scottish National Party (SNP) in a general election on May 7, according to a poll published on Friday. Jim Murphy is leading Labour's effort to fight back against a surge in support for the SNP that could cost the party its chance to lead the next British government. For him to lose his seat to a nationalist rival would be a humiliating symbol of Labour's collapse in Scotland, previously a reliable reservoir of Labour support. Lord Ashcroft Polls found that in Murphy's constituency of East Renfrewshire, 40 percent of those surveyed said they would vote for the SNP candidate, 31 percent for Murphy and 25 percent for the Conservative candidate. A previous Lord Ashcroft poll in February had found that Murphy had a one-point lead over his SNP challenger. In two other Labour-held Scottish seats, the SNP had also extended its lead since a previous round of polling. Lord Ashcroft Polls also found the SNP ahead by a double-digit lead in three Scottish seats held by the Liberal Democrats, junior partners to the Conservatives in the ruling coalition. In a fourth Liberal Democrat seat, the contest was too close to call between the Lib Dem, Conservative and SNP candidates, while in Scotland's only Conservative-held seat the race was too close to call between the incumbent and an SNP challenger. The polls were conducted between April 10 and 16 and just over 1,000 people were interviewed by telephone in each of the eight constituencies surveyed. The SNP, which has a majority in Scotland's devolved parliament, lost a referendum on Scottish independence in September last year but has seen its support surge since then and threatens to rout Labour. At present, Labour holds 41 of Scotland's 59 seats in the national parliament in London, while the SNP have six. After May 7, one recent national poll suggested the SNP could have 53 seats while Labour could be down to just four. (Reporting by Estelle Shirbon; editing by Stephen Addison)