Scottish Labour leadership: Candidates admit need for change

The two candidates who hope to take control of Scottish Labour have admitted things have gone very wrong for the party.

Monica Lennon says the Labour party is "broken" and Scots "don't think it is their party any more" and Anas Sarwar wants to "give people the Labour Party they deserve".

Both MSPs were speaking on the BBC's Politics Scotland programme.

And both claimed to be the "change" candidate for Scottish Labour.

The contest was triggered after Richard Leonard resigned as leader, saying it was in the best interests of the party for him to stand down.

Mr Leonard said he believed speculation about his leadership had become a "distraction". And he stepped down with immediate effect on 14 January.

Monica Lennon admitted a number of things had gone wrong for Labour.

She said: "A lot has gone wrong for Labour. We need to start actively listening to people who have walked away from Labour, those people who feel that we have not been on their side.

"We need to support our communities through this pandemic. But we need to show ambition for the future.

"Right now, we have to protect our NHS, we have to look after our young people who have had a year of lost learning, people who are going to food banks. What saddens me about the Labour party is that many of those people have come to feel that Labour isn't their party and that is what I want to change."

Anas Sarwar said the party's issues have been ongoing for a long time.

He said: "If we are honest, we would recognise we haven't given our members, and the people of Scotland, the Labour party they deserve. At a time when we have got rising inequalities, rising injustices, rising division in our country, Labour's not been on the pitch.

"At times, we have looked like we were too busy fighting amongst ourselves or fighting yesterday's battles rather than looking like we were Scotland's future. And I never want that to happen again."

He said the issues began even before Scottish Labour worked with the Conservatives on the Better Together campaign in 2014.

"Our problems were long before that referendum campaign and we have had even deeper problems since that campaign," he said.

Both hopefuls said they were the candidate for change. And both said they did not believe supporting a second independence referendum was the way forward for Labour.

Ms Lennon said she expected the issue of independence to come up.

"That's an issue that Scottish labour can't just sit out and I want to have a confident debate with the public to listen to what they have to say and not tell the people of Scotland they can't have a referendum if they want one in the future," she said.

She added: "I don't think the only option in town is between independence led by the SNP and the status quo led by the Tories. I believe in devolution and think we need more powers in Scotland and to do better using the powers we have."

Mr Sarwar said: "I get out of bed to fight for social justice and equality and if I thought a referendum or independence would help support social justice I would support that but I think the reality is it would make it harder.

"Regardless of your position on independence, let's all recognise we are all going through a collective period of trauma of Covid and after that we need a period of healing, a period of calm, and reunite our country."

Both candidates also said they were willing to work with UK leader Keir Starmer but that there would be no doubt who was in charge in Scotland.

A leader to replace Richard Leonard will be declared on 27 February.