Voters sick of indyref 2 talk says Labour leader
Labour facing a dilemma in bid to win back city
BOTH Yes and No voters are “sick to the back teeth” of plans for a second independence referendum, Labour’s Kezia Dugdale has said.
Launching the party’s election campaign for the council elections next month, the Scottish Labour leader said SNP constituencies feel “left behind” by the Scottish Government’s focus on independence.
She also warned Scots who vote Conservative as a protest against independence will be putting local services at risk.
Leading Tories have been calling on voters to use the election on May 4 to send a message to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon not to hold a second Scottish independence referendum.
Speaking at the campaign launch in Edinburgh, Ms Dugdale said: “Communities which have voted SNP since 2011 feel left behind by a Scottish Government that is only interested in running another referendum.
“It doesn’t matter whether they voted yes or no. People are sick to the back teeth of it.”
She accused the SNP of using the referendum to “distract” voters from its “poor” record in government, adding: “The SNP doesn’t want to talk about educa- tion, social care and other failed services because it knows it’s failing. So we are back discussing a referendum.”
Ms Dugdale, whose party is third in the polls behind the Scottish Conservatives, said Labour is the “last line of defence between the people and the SNP’s cuts”.
She said: “We can’t afford for our councils to turn i nto another arm of the SNP Government in Edinburgh and neither do we want to turn our town halls over to the Tories.”
She continued: “Voting in this election isn’t a protest vote. Your vote in this election really matters.
“If you vote for the Tories, you are voting for them to be in power – to take control of your council services. Not to be in opposition or to protest against independence.
“So before you vote, think about whether you want a Tory in charge of elderly care, social services and schools. This is a party itching to cut even more money from our valued public services.”
She criticised Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson’s backing of the “abhorrent rape clause” as showing the “ruthless” true nature of the Tories.
Changes brought in by the Conservatives at Westminster mean women claiming tax credits for a third or subsequent child have to prove they became pregnant as a result of a rape or while in a coercive relationship in order to qualify for the payments.
Ms Dugdale’s campaign launch came minutes after the Prime Minister announced a snap election for June 8 and the Labour leader said she would “work tirelessly” to deliver a Labour government with Jeremy Corbyn as Prime Minister.
Scottish Conservative deputy leader Jackson Carlaw responded: “This is desperate stuff from Kezia Dugdale. She and her party are heading for an electoral disaster on May 4. Judging from these comments, they are already in panic mode.”
He said only his party could be trusted to stand up to the SNP and the plan for a second referendum.
THE snap General Election will see the Labour Party having to find seven people to take on mission impossible in Glasgow.
The party faces campaigning in a General Election defending no seats in the city for the first time in living memory of most people in the city.
Former prominent Labour politicians in the city said the party faces a dilemma as it begins the process of selecting candidates.
Does it stand politicians who have been previously defeated or does it look to unknown names, building for the future?
Some Labour names have already ruled themselves out of standing on June 8 and say that Labour must look to emerging talent to regain the respect and trust of voters.
Former Glasgow City Council leader, Steven Purcell, who many have predicted could be looking to re-enter politics, said it is not for him.
He said a new start is needed and a fresh look at how Labour tackles the independence question before it can recover.
He said: “Labour should be enlisting fresh faces to be standard bearers of the party. None of us with political baggage of the past should be standing. We should be encouraging those with a freshness and a fresh perspective.” Instead, Mr Purcell said Labour should take a leaf out of the SNP’s book and bring in outsiders.
He added: “If they are not already in the party Kezia Dugdale should be asking the Executive Committee to open the door to allow people to be fast tracked as candidates. It was successful for the SNP in 2015.”
Since 2014, Labour has been caught in a trap of the SNP taking all the pro –independence voters and the Tories emerging as the more vocal of the pro-union parties.
Mr Purcell said until the constitutional issue is finally settled, Labour cannot be a force.
He said: “There is no route back until indyref 2 is out the way.
“The Labour party has to take a long deep breath and examine itself in the mirror and listen to its former voters.”
He said it should step back from the independence debate and let the voters decide.
He added: “Leave the SNP to argue vigorously for independence. Labour should concentrate on core Labour issues. The constitution is a matter for people to decide.”
Mr Purcell ruled himself out of a return to electoral politics at this election.
He said: “At 45 I’m no longer fresh faced. We need a new profile of candidates. If Labour brings in the some old faces it will get worse results.”
Just two years ago Labour suffered humiliation as it lost all seven Glasgow Westminster seats to the SNP.
A year later the same fate befell the party’s long standing MSPs with another wipe-out.
Tom Harris, former MP for Glasgow Cathcart and then Glasgow South, from 2001 until 2015 said he has much respect for those standing for Labour in Glasgow this time round.
He said it would be a “very brave” person who would stand for Labour in Glasgow in June. He added: “I have huge respect for Labour politicians who put themselves forward.”
He said in previous elections a Labour candidate was almost guaranteed a seat at Westminster in the city.
This time, he said: “All you are subjecting yourself to is humiliation.”
Given his relationship with the current leadership, it is no surprise that Mr Harris has ruled himself out of the running.
He said he is still a member who will campaign in the council elections for Labour candidates.
However he added: “I couldn’t campaign for the party at a General Election under Jeremy Corbyn. It’s a leadership thing.”
The election will also see the SNP looking to select a new candidate for Glasgow East.
Natalie McGarry won the seat from Labour in 2015 but l ater resigned from the SNP amid a police investigation into financial irregularities over the accounts of campaign group Women for Independence.
She is an independent MP and has since been charged by the police with embezzlement.
All other six Glasgow SNP MPs, Patrick Grady, Stewart McDonald, Anne McLaughlin, Carol Monaghan, Chris Stephens, and Alison Thewliss are expected to stand again.