I get told go back to Yorkshire and things like that
et a go at.” ish o a was sed en lot. der for d a th. ent was ory nd ved nd ies, eI nce the to er, ent t of fashion” as New Labour redirected the party’s agenda and took us to war.
He was chair of Scottish Labour when he marched against the invasion of Iraq.
The party met in the days after the invasion, convening in Dundee on the Thursday night.
He said: “I turned on the TV on the Friday morning to see pictures of Baghdad being bombed and going up in flames. It was an awful time.
“I felt badly let down. I think it was decision which has cast a shadow over the Labour Party for quite some time but I think we are coming out of it.
“Ed Miliband’s apology was the start of the reparation.” Questions requires a certain skill and his performance is a “work in progress” but he has set out his stall.
His mission, he said, is to “fundamentally change” the economic system.
He supports public ownership, wants to reform the private rented sector and build council housing, get rid of zerohour contracts and bring care back into local authority control.
In the meantime, the party have been dogged by allegations of racism and accusers say he has paid the issue little more than lip service.
But he insisted, he wants the disciplinary process streamlined to ensure racists can be ousted.
Each morning at 6am, he takes Copper, his “demanding” Hungarian vizsla, for a walk and clears his head.
He insists he sleeps through the night and doesn’t let the pressure take hold.
He said: “If I was waiting at a bus stop at 6am to go work in a factory for 10 hours, then I might get stressed.”
Before he goes to sleep, he follows Benn’s advice and writes a diary, to offload and find perspective.
He is confident a Labour victory in Scotland will eventually feature but that is certainly a blank page for now.
RICHARD LEONARD ON SOCIAL MEDIA ABUSE