AN audience member took aim at Anas Sarwar on BBC’s Debate Night election special on Tuesday evening, saying the Labour Party’s positions were “disturbing”.
John Swinney, Anas Sarwar, Douglas Ross, Alex Cole-Hamilton and Lorna Slater all went head-to-head in a special edition of the programme.
The leaders clashed on a range of issues with Sarwar saying that it is “for Scottish people to decide what the future of our country is” while refusing to be drawn on whether Scotland should have the powers to hold a second independence referendum.
“The Labour Party is lying to the public… you’re going to be exactly like the Tories - you’re going to continue austerity cuts” Audience member tears Anas Sarwar apart on BBC Scotland Debate Vote SNP to reject cuts, protect our NHS and put Scotland’s interests first #VoteSNP pic.twitter.com/FLHWptC3OX
— Tom French (@tomfrench85) June 11, 2024
Towards the end of the programme, one audience member told Sarwar: “I think what’s most disturbing in this debate is the position of the Labour Party.
“You’re essentially lying to the public, you’re acting as if you’re gonna be the saviour of the British public when you’re gonna be exactly like the Tories.
“You’re gonna continue austerity and you’re not gonna make a tangible difference for people in Scotland.
“You’re just giving us lie after lie after lie, you’re gonna develop new and existing problems for the next five years and I don’t think anyone should believe you.”
Sarwar was not given an immediate chance to reply although was heard saying “no” during the audience members comments.
However, the Scottish Labour leader was then told to answer the audience member’s question.
“I am the only one that’s made specific pledges about what we would do if we elect a Labour government, everyone else has spoken in generalities,” Sarwar said.
“We will deliver a genuine living wage to make work pay. That will give a pay rise to 232,000 Scots, we will establish GB Energy, a publicly-owned energy company headquartered here in Scotland that will make billions of pounds of investment in the clean energy of the future.
“That means more jobs, lower bills, greater energy security.”
The audience member then directly confronted Sarwar on what Labour would do to “improve the situation in Gaza”.
“I’ll tell you what we’re gonna do, we need an immediate ceasefire. I think my views on Gaza are well known, I’ve been to the Gaza Strip myself to deliver aid into the Gaza Strip before I became a politician.
“My views are well known, I believe in a two-state solution, I believe Benjamin Netanyahu is committing war crimes, I believe Hamas should be separated from the Palestinian people, I believe that we need an immediate ceasefire, we need immediate access to humanitarian aid and we need to see a change of situation in the ground.”
