Why voting Labour is good for Scotland - Ian Murray
Scotland needs change and today people up and down the country have the chance to deliver it by voting for a Scottish Labour government with Anas Sarwar as First Minister.
I knock on a lot of doors and speak to a lot of people, and what I hear is that many people want the SNP out and to stop Reform.
At first glance, those two parties may appear to be gulfs apart, but in truth they are two sides of the same coin: both are focused on divisive nationalism rather than on delivering tangible improvements for the country. Scotland doesn’t need another five years of constitutional quagmire, but a better future where the Scottish Government actually sets out every day to improve the country, not divide it.
Because while the SNP and Reform bicker about the constitution and culture wars, the issues that really matter – potholes on the roads, getting a GP appointment, and standards in schools – are left by the wayside.
Scottish Labour have a plan to fix the mess, get the basics right and deliver a better future for Scotland. It’s all there in the manifesto, which is well worth a read.
Here in south Edinburgh residents have two brilliant Scottish Labour candidates to vote for. Those in Fairmilehead, Morningside, Blackford, Liberton, Gracemount, Moredun and Gilmerton can vote for Daniel Johnson, the current MSP for Edinburgh Southern.
Since 2016, we’ve worked together on dozens of local issues. In the Scottish Parliament, he has passed important new legislation protecting retail workers from abuse at work and regulating the use of restraint and seclusion on vulnerable children in schools.
Meanwhile, those in Polwarth, Merchiston, Bruntsfield, Marchmont and Sciennes can vote for James Dalgleish, who currently serves as the education convenor on the City of Edinburgh Council. I know he will be a fantastic representative for our communities in these areas.
A Scottish Labour government in Holyrood would be well-placed to build on the work the UK Labour government has been doing the last two years. Look at what has been delivered in that time: nearly £12bn in additional resources for the Scottish Government (which SNP MPs voted against), £750mn for the Edinburgh University supercomputer and the £10bn UK-Norway frigates deal for shipyards on the Clyde.
The parliamentary session which ended last week has seen the UK Labour government pass over 50 bills, from the landmark Employment Rights Act to the abolition of hereditary peers in the House of Lords.
At the same time, we have made sharp increases to the minimum wage and the State Pension, and abolished the two-child benefit cap, benefitting 1100 families in Edinburgh South and 95,000 children across Scotland.
There’s much more to do and the UK Labour government’s programme for the next parliamentary session will be outlined in the King’s Speech next week.
But with two Labour governments north and south of the border, Scotland would once again have two governments working together constructively, and focused not on constitutional posturing and stunts, but on improving public services and fixing the SNP’s mess. Now that’s something to vote for.