New Blood: In the run-up to election day in Scotland, we profile some of the candidates hoping to become MSPs, such as Monica Lennon, second on Labour's list in Central Scotland.


WATCHING the news and realising that the Tories were on the verge of winning a General Election was enough to make Monica Lennon join the Labour Party.

That was back in 2010 and now she is hailed as one of the party’s most promising candidates in the Scottish parliamentary elections, standing second on the list in Central Scotland.

Currently a councillor for Hamilton, Lennon has moved up the ranks quickly since joining the party six years ago.

Born in 1981, she grew up under Tory governments until Tony Blair took power in 1997. Broadly happy with the Labour government, she stayed fairly detached from politics until it looked as though the Tories were about to triumph once again.

“By that time I was a parent, I had lived a life and had been affected by the recession as I was made redundant,” she remembers.

“I watched the news more closely and became frightened they were going to get back in. Then I thought there’s no point in sitting in the house and moaning so I went online and joined. The following day someone from the party welcomed me and let me know how to start campaigning, so I became more involved from there.”

Lennon hadn’t ever thought of standing for election but when a local female councillor retired Labour members asked if she would step in.

“It took a bit of persuasion but I stood and won,” says Lennon.

Her decision to stand as a candidate for the Scottish Parliament was made after party leader Kezia Dugdale called for new faces to come forward.

As a former council planning officer who also worked as a project manager for a house-building firm and an adviser to the Scottish Government, housing is the issue that most concerns Lennon.

“There are lots of things I am concerned about, but if I had to concentrate on one that comes up time and time again, and that I can bring some expertise to, it’s the housing crisis,” she says.

“We have 150,000 people on housing waiting lists across Scotland. Thousands are sleeping in temporary accommodation, including 5,000 children. Just imagine how that affects every aspect of their lives.

“Housing is already devolved but what good is power to a parliament if you don’t have the will to act?

“If you speak to the house-building industry, planning and infrastructure constraints are a big problem. The Scottish Government commissioned a review but didn’t publish the findings before the election. We don’t need a report to know they’ve over-promised and under-delivered.

“And the memorandum of understanding that has been signed by the SNP government and Chinese investment companies is troubling.

“The house-building industry employs thousands of people across Scotland but it’s very vulnerable. If we have a situation where pre-fab homes are shipped in from overseas it’ll have a real effect on the supply chain, skills and jobs here, as well as the quality of homes.

“People need affordable homes, jobs and investment in services. For too long there has been a debate about the constitution but we have to get a handle on these real issues.”