Labour faces growing criticism over activist’s job in industry
SCOTTISH Labour is facing growing criticism over a lobbyist for Carillion and other big building firms involved in blacklisting workers sitting on its governing body.
The Herald revealed on Wednesday former MSP Cara Hilton has been the policy and public affairs manager for the construction sector’s trade body since December
2016.
Two months after starting her job with the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) Scotland, she was elected to Labour’s ruling Scottish Executive Committee with the backing of the Campaign for Socialism.
The former Dunfermline MSP then stood in the general election, campaigning alongside Jeremy Corbyn, and later backed Richard Leonard as Scottish Labour leader.
However, many of the 100 construction companies in CECA Scotland that she represents have been heavily criticised by Labour over historic bad practices.
Colin Fox, the former Scottish Socialist MSP, said Ms Hilton’s work for an umbrella group representing past blacklisters “smells of rank hypocrisy” and should end.
He said: “It is clear that the links to the world of casualised work, PFI rip offs and attacks on workers’ rights which were pioneered by New Labour still have not been broken.”
Ms Hilton, 42, has not responded to requests by The Herald for a comment on the matter.
A Scottish Labour spokesman said: “This is a lazy attempt to smear a Labour campaigner with a first class record of campaigning for workers’ rights.”