The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Dugdale has no regrets about I’m A Celebrity
TV: The former Scottish Labour leader got the chop on Sunday night’s episode
Former Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale has said she took part in I’m A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! to show young people that politicians are human and to encourage them to vote.
The MSP was the second contestant to get the boot from the reality TV show but said she has no regrets.
She told ITV’s Lorraine: “I know that it’s controversial to see an elected politician, a current politician, do something like this but I wanted to show people that politicians come in all different shapes and sizes, that they are not all elderly white men of a certain generation, there are young people there that want to represent young people and show the best of our politics.”
She added: “I’m confident that I’ve done what I went into the jungle to do, to talk about politics as a force for good in the world, to show that women can be strong, that women can do a man’s jobs, so to speak, something that Amir (Khan) and I had a few run-ins here and there, and also have a laugh and let people see that politicians are human.
“I think that’s really important in the world that we live in right now.”
She added: “I know I’m going back to a good deal of criticism and I will take that face-on, I’ve got to have a lot of conversations with people but I’m going back with my head held high.
“I came out here to do what I wanted to do, I believe I’ve succeeded in that and I love my job, it’s a great privilege to be a Labour politician and I fully intend on continuing to do it for a very long time.” Kez enjoyed bacon and eggs and lots of coffee on her immediate departure from the jungle.
She will have needed it – I think she’s lost nearly a stone in weight. When I spoke to her she was in great spirits and I know she’s learned a lot from the experience. She was mostly looking forward to sleeping in a proper bed!
I’m really proud of Kez for surviving in the jungle. One of her strongest qualities is her kindness. The show allowed you to see snippets of that in terms of how she got on with others – from cooking rice cakes for the boys to making sure the fire kept going. She even managed to thole living with a Tory, which is truly remarkable. I’m looking forward to getting her home safely and back to Scotland. It’s been tough watching her on the other side of the world without any contact; but I was glad she did eventually get her care package on her final night. And I’m very glad I’ll get to see her smiley face soon.