OUT of touch. Arrogant. Unwilling and unable to change. Tone deaf and not trusted by the Scottish people. No, I’m not talking about Boris Johnson. I’m talking about Scottish Labour. Having fallen from their perch to third place in Holyrood, they refuse to set aside constitutional divides for a common progressive cause against the ruinous Tories. They’ve become obsessed with fighting the wrong battles, and seem totally unable to get on with the day job.
It’s no surprise Scottish Labour are resorting to dirty tricks in order to promote their floundering platform. Backroom deals, lies and spin all mask their fatal lack of ambition and vision for Scotland.
They are utterly obsessed with claiming they are the only party that can “boot out Boris” – despite the fact that in every Tory-held constituency in Scotland, it is the SNP who have the best chance of defeating the enablers of Boris Johnson’s programme of law-breaking chaos. What’s more, Scottish Labour don’t seem too fussed about actually standing up to the toxic Tories. In fact, Labour have sought Tory support to prop up minority administrations in Fife, Stirling and Edinburgh (to name but a few) in the aftermath of the council elections.
READ MORE: Top Keir Starmer ally 'confirms Scottish Labour is just branch office in Glasgow'
This was never about progressivism, democracy or even local issues for Labour. It was merely a chance to “stick it to the Nats”. So why should the Scottish people trust them to deliver real change on a national level if they keep whisking the carpet from under voters’ feet?
The issues facing the country are not scarce – the cost-of-living crisis, rising energy prices and spiralling inflation are hitting the most vulnerable in society the hardest. However, instead of focusing on these pressing concerns, Scottish Labour and their MSPs choose to focus on promoting their largely forgettable leader as the lone alternative to Boris Johnson.
The numbers suggest the Scottish people aren’t buying it. YouGov’s most recent poll shows Scottish Labour on 23%, less than half of the SNP.
Because of their withering moral fibre and lack of relevance to 21st-century Scottish politics, Labour has become the party of meaningless soundbites, substanceless policy and dodgy fact-checking. Remember when Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar claimed the councils led by Labour administrations would impose a windfall tax on oil companies? Yeah, good luck with that.
Scottish Labour’s problems are also evidenced by the fact that young people just don’t trust them. Referencing the most recent YouGov poll again, a mere 19% of 16 to 24-year-olds back Scottish Labour to form a government. This is in contrast to the SNP’s whopping 57% support among the same age group. This is proof that Labour have failed to adapt to modern Scottish politics. Things have changed since they last won power in Holyrood.
They are living off nostalgia of being the “rightful party of Scotland”. No political party is entitled to any such moniker, especially not one so out of touch that they see fit to proudly display the list of Scottish Labour peers in the House of Lords on their website.
While the SNP Government is delivering meaningful change such as the Young Person’s Guarantee, doubling the Scottish Child Payment and starting preparations for a second independence referendum, Sarwar is trying to airbrush Tory austerity from history by claiming it was Westminster’s control of Scotland that has kept services funded.
People are terrified to open bills when they come through their door, and yet Scottish Labour are unable to offer a solution beyond “let London handle it”. This shows the Scottish voters which party will really stand up for those facing income insecurity in the coming months. Nothing Scottish Labour says on the cost-of-living crisis can be taken seriously as long as they continue to do dodgy deals with the Tories, the architects of the crisis.
The Scottish people want serious politicians and serious agendas to combat the Tory-made disaster Scotland finds itself in. The amount of money the Scottish Government is spending to mitigate the effects of Westminster-imposed austerity makes it clear the SNP is providing a grown-up opposition to Boris Johnson’s cuts and chaos. However, Scottish Labour would have you believe that their 22 MSPs and one MP are the only credible force to stop the Tories. They’re taking the Scottish people for fools. As usual.
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