It’s D-Day for Leonard as he faces vote of no confidence
SCOTTISH Labour leader Richard Leonard will face a vote of no confidence at a crisis meeting today.
The party’s governing body is set to discuss Mr Leonard’s future amid growing pressure for him to quit.
It is understood that a third of Scottish Executive Committee (SEC) members have backed a motion calling for a vote of no confidence.
Lashing out at those demanding his resignation, Mr Leonard blamed a ‘faction’ within the party, which he believes is being led by MSPs including Daniel Johnson, James Kelly and Jenny Marra.
But, according to sources, the comments angered rank-and-file members, some of whom will have a vote in today’s motion. They claim that even if Mr Leonard manages to win the vote, his position is ‘untenable’.
There are 32 members on Labour’s SEC, including Mr Leonard, deputy leader Jackie Baillie and MP Ian Murray. Miss Marra is also a member, as well as MSP Mark Griffin, who quit his frontbench position after urging the leader to step down.
Last night, a senior Scottish Labour source said: ‘Officially the vote is not binding, but it would be unimaginable to lose it and stay on.
‘Even if he narrowly wins, he’ll be very, very damaged. There could be a situation where he relies on his own vote to win and that would look terrible.
‘If Richard narrowly wins, it will mean he has lost support of some of the unions, and that is just not good enough.’
The source added: ‘Richard has claimed this is a “faction”, a small group in the party who want rid of him but it’s not, it’s wider than that.
‘And his accusations of factionalism have really upset people. He is in real trouble.’
In 2015, former Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy quit after winning a no-confidence vote by only three votes.
Mr Leonard has insisted he will not stand down and has accused his opponents of ‘underestimating’ him.
Responding to the motion of no confidence, he said: ‘The last thing Labour supporters and those we need to win back want to see is a party turning in on itself. A lot of these people are not mandated by their organisations to vote in this way.
‘That exposes how this is motivated by faction and that this is an entirely factional move. They have nothing to say or offer, no ideas, no plan to protect jobs and living standards against the backdrop of the Covid crisis.
‘That is what I want us to concentrate on: the real struggle the people of Scotland are in.’
The SEC oversees the direction of the party and is made up of elected representatives and members of affiliated groups such as trade unions.
‘He’ll be very, very damaged’