Labour leader Keir Starmer has promised “change within Scotland” on the eve of a major announcement on overhauling the UK constitution.
Starmer also rejected Nicola Sturgeon ’s call to turn the general election into indyref2 and warned her a Labour majority would be unaffected by her call.
He claimed the argument for another referendum had not changed since 2014 as there had not been a “sustained” shift in support.
Tory economic chaos has handed Labour a massive polling lead and Starmer is poised to become his party’s first Prime Minister since 2010.
But Labour faces a massive challenge in Scotland, which is dominated politically by the SNP and where Starmer’s party only has one MP.
In a joint interview with the Record in Glasgow, Starmer and Scots Labour leader Anas Sarwar addressed the independence question and spoke of the plan for greater powers for Holyrood.
On the Supreme Court rejecting Holyrood’s ability to stage a referendum on its own, which has led Sturgeon to claim the next general election will be about independence, he said of the ruling:
“I’m glad they’ve clarified the issue. I think having certainty is a very, very good thing.
“But I don’t think it changes the underlying basics or priorities, which is that just at the moment, the cost of living crisis, recovering from covid, restoring our public services in Scotland are the key priorities.”
Given the UK Government’s refusal to agree a deal on indyref2, the SNP say Scots are entitled to know the route to a referendum.
Starmer said: “My answer to that would be that the question was put in 2014. And an answer was given. And since then, has there been sustained polling in favour of independence? The answer to that is no. And still isn’t. On top of that, as far as I understand it, pretty well all the polls that say ‘what are your priorities’ or ‘when should this take place’ say this is not a priority.”
He also denied Scotland is ‘trapped’ in the Union following the court judgement:
“There isn’t a sustained majority for independence, so this whole notion of ‘trapped’ doesn’t reflect the polling. But equally, there is a majority for prioritising other things. And therefore, it is entirely consistent with the majority view in Scotland that an incoming Labour government should concentrate on the other things.”
One route for indyref2 he categorically rules out is the Sturgeon plan of turning the general election into a ‘de facto’ referendum:
“That’s not what the framing of the election will be. It’s a UK-wide election with a very basic and important choice. Do you want to continue with the shambles and failure of a Tory government, or do you want change and a fresh start with Labour?
“That is the framing of the election, whatever the SNP say about it. What our offer carries with it is the promise of change within Scotland within a changed United Kingdom.
“If you accept my argument that the framing of the election is as I’ve set out then the way in which other people campaign doesn’t affect the mandate that I will have. If we come in as a majority Labour government, we will have a mandate and our mandate is what we set out in our manifesto.”
Sarwar, on whose watch Scottish Labour has regained second place from the Tories, said the ‘de facto’ referendum call is a sign of desperation from Sturgeon:
“It’s pretty clear from the resignation of Ian Blackford, from the crisis we’ve seen our national health service, from the language Nicola Sturgeon used after the Supreme Court ruling, and the desperate attempts she’s making to try and reframe the next general election, that this is a First Minister that’s getting increasingly tired, increasingly running out of road.”
When he was last interviewed by the Record in January, Starmer said boosting the powers of Holyrood would be a priority of a Labour Government.=
Starmer tasked former Prime Minister Gordon Brown with drawing up plans to radically change the UK constitution and the proposals are expected on Monday.
He said he had “always been an advocate of more powers in Scotland”, adding:
“I want to roll up our sleeves and run towards the challenge. And the challenge is dealing with the cost of living crisis, restoring stability to our economy, growing our economy everywhere, restoring our public services, and accepting the basis of the argument there needs to be change in Scotland.
“I do understand that yearning for change, that yearning for the ability to improve families, communities, change in Scotland, I accept that. I think that can be done within the case for a changed Scotland, within a changed United Kingdom.”
Sarwar said: “I completely understand why people are angry and frustrated with the Tory government that feels out of touch, feels disconnected and looks like they are economically illiterate at a time of economic chaos right across the country.”
Starmer added: “I want a Labour government that serves the Scottish people and delivers for the Scottish people, whichever way they vote.
“I also think it’s very important for us to be able to demonstrate to voters in Scotland who want change that the idea of a Labour government coming in is credible and realistic. And I’m afraid for 12 years that hasn’t been the case.”
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