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Scotsman
18 hours ago
- Politics
- Scotsman
John Swinney claims Labour has 'given up' on by-election and contest is between SNP and Reform
Labour says Reform 'can't win' and SNP 'don't deserve' to do so as campaigning goes into final weekend Sign up to our Politics newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... John Swinney has accused Labour of having "given up" on winning next week's Holyrood by-election - insisting the battle is now a "straight contest" between the SNP and "the ugly, divisive politics of Nigel Farage ". The First Minister was speaking as the campaign for the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse vote entered its final weekend. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad With the "crucial" vote taking place on Thursday June 5 , Mr Swinney said backing the SNP candidate means people in the area will "elect an MSP who will deliver on their priorities". Labour however insisted the by-election - taking place after the death of Scottish Government minister Christina McKelvie - is a "chance to call time on SNP failure and choose a new direction". Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar joins candidate for the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election Davy Russell as they meet with workers at Raeburn Brick Limited on Friday | Getty Images Dame Jackie Baillie , the Scottish Labour deputy leader, insisted only her party can defeat the SNP. She said Reform UK "can't win" the seat, while adding that the SNP "don't deserve" to do so. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Dame Jackie said: "We can see the consequences of SNP incompetence right across this community - people languishing on NHS waiting lists, high street shops struggling to stay open, and kids not getting the education they deserve. "It's clear the SNP does not deserve to win this by-election and only Scottish Labour can beat them." She added that Reform UK, led by Mr Farage, "can't win here" - declaring: "This is a direct fight between Scottish Labour and the SNP, no matter how much Reform and the SNP want to pretend otherwise. "This weekend Scottish Labour campaigners will be talking to voters the length and breadth of Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse so we can deliver a new direction for this community and elect local champion Davy Russell." Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'Things are really tough right now' Mr Swinney accepted "things are really tough right now for many people, with the cost of living a real issue". But the First Minister insisted that "while others shout, the SNP is acting". He pointed to action his party is taking at Holyrood to scrap peak rate rail fares, to pay winter fuel payments to pensioners, and to end the two-child cap on some benefits - a move expected to come in next year. Mr Swinney continued: "Labour have let people across Scotland down, and they have quite clearly given up on this by-election. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "Thursday's vote is now a straight contest between the SNP and Nigel Farage - and I am urging people to reject the ugly, divisive politics of Nigel Farage and to unite behind the SNP." Reform candidate Ross Lambie hands out leaflets as he campaigns in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election on Friday | Getty Images Katy Loudon , the SNP's candidate for the seat, meanwhile declared if she is voted into Holyrood, she will "get on with the job from day one". She said: "This by-election is an opportunity to put the priorities of people in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse first, and my promise to local people is this - I will always stand with you, fight for you and deliver for you." Mr Swinney said on Friday he is willing to debate with Mr Farage , following a challenge laid down to the Reform UK leader by Mr Sarwar. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad A social media video by Reform UK has prompted furore from parties in the Scottish Parliament , as it claimed Mr Sarwar would "prioritise" the Pakistani community. The advert - which the SNP and Labour have demanded be removed by Meta - shows clips of Mr Sarwar calling for more representation of Scots with south Asian heritage, although he did not say he would prioritise any one group. Row over 'blatantly racist' Reform ad Labour has previously described the ad as "blatantly racist", and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has accused Mr Farage of "introducing poison into our politics". Voters go to the polls on June 5 in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse Holyrood constituency - a by-election called following the death of SNP MSP Christina McKelvie. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad First Minister John Swinney takes part in a whisky tasting session during a visit to the Auchentoshan Distillery in Glasgow on Friday | PA Mr Sarwar has said he is willing to debate the Reform UK leader, saying "I'll challenge him any time, any place in Hamilton, any town hall". During a visit to the Auchentoshan Distillery near Glasgow on Friday, the First Minister was asked if he too is ready to debate Mr Farage. Swinney challenges Farage to debate He said: "I would, of course, debate with Nigel Farage. "But what's important is that we've got a contest on Thursday, which is an attempt by Farage to insert his politics of racism and poison into Scotland. "I want to make sure the SNP wins the two-horse race in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse by-election. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "It's crystal clear to me, the Labour campaign is collapsing and only votes for the SNP will stop Farage." Reform UK spokesman and Glasgow councillor Thomas Kerr had earlier responded to the Prime Minister's attacks on his party. He said: "Reform UK won't take any lectures on 'restoring trust in politics' from Sir Keir Starmer . "This is a Prime Minister whose first decision in office was to plunge millions of pensioners into fuel poverty. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad "Labour's campaign in Hamilton has been a calamity of car-crash gaffes from a candidate who ducks the media, a leader who forgets the candidate's name, and a Prime Minister who refuses to even turn up. "Starmer and Sarwar have broken Scotland . Reform will fix it." Labour has seen its chances of winning next year's Holyrood election tumble in the polls as voters that helped it oust the Tories at last year's Westminster election have deserted the party, with many now 'undecided'.
Telegraph
a day ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Watch: Rayner ‘runs away' from pro-Palestinian protesters
Angela Rayner was forced to abandon a by-election campaign visit in Scotland because of pro-Palestinian protesters. The Deputy Prime Minister was accused of 'doing a runner' from a visit in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, where pro-Gaza demonstrators shouted 'Rayner, Rayner, you can't hide – you're supporting genocide'. Her visit came amid a surge in support for Reform UK in Scotland ahead of the Holyrood by-election in Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse next week. The by-election was called following the death of Christina McKelvie, an SNP MSP. Ms Rayner accompanied Davy Russell, the by-election candidate, and Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, around the constituency on Thursday. A group of protesters stationed themselves by what appeared to be Scottish Labour's campaign office, holding Palestinian and Scottish Socialist Party flags. Several, including one with a megaphone, reportedly went on to shout 'Rayner's done a runner' and 'runaway Rayner' after it emerged that she would not be making a scheduled stop there. It is understood that the Deputy Prime Minister still fulfilled all her media duties and met with constituents, but that campaign visits are informed by security advice. Asked about the protests, she told Sky News: 'The protesters regarding the dire situation in Palestine I completely understand. 'Davey Russell, our local candidate here, is fighting hard for this seat, and he'll be here long after the by-election, and has been serving his community for 45 years'. Asked what she thought about having to 'do a runner', she replied: 'You didn't see me doing a runner. There was no running. What we were doing is campaigning as we always expected to do around here. I'm out on the streets as it is now, and I'll be knocking on doors.' Mr Russell has faced criticism for a lack of public appearances during the campaign, having pulled out of televised debates against opponents. But he denied keeping a low profile, telling journalists: 'If you actually go and chap [knock on] the doors, speaking to people, they don't see the SNP, they don't see Reform. They only see them in adverts.' Ms Rayner told the Daily Record that criticisms of Mr Russell, which have included accusing him of being unable to 'string a handful of words together', were 'classist'. 'He's a hard grafter and he doesn't deserve to be treated in that way, in a classist way, but I am sure he is going to prove them all wrong,' she said. 'It's just a very outdated view of people from a working-class background. I come from a working-class background. People work really hard and they over-compensate sometimes for feeling like they are not as good as someone who possibly went to a private school.' Reform UK's popularity has prompted John Swinney, the SNP First Minister, to call the race a 'straight contest' between his party and Nigel Farage's. Mr Swinney also claimed the Labour campaign was in collapse and urged voters to rally behind the SNP in order to fend off Reform. He wrote in the Daily Record on Thursday: 'You have a chance to tell Nigel Farage that his poisonous politics are not welcome. You have a chance to make the next year about the priorities you care about, not the poison of a man in it for himself.' Scottish Labour has accused Mr Farage's party of campaign adverts that amounted to ' dog-whistle racism '. The by-election campaign advert used clips of a speech by Mr Sarwar in which he said he wanted more people from South Asian backgrounds to stand for election. The clips were preceded by the caption 'Anas Sarwar has said he will prioritise the Pakistani community' – a phrase he did not use. On Tuesday, the Reform leader
Daily Record
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Record
Hamilton Labour candidate insists grassroots campaign is "definitely working" in crunch by-election
Davy Russell says he has made a "conscious decision" to prioritise doorstep canvassing, and says the June 5 contest remains between his party and the SNP Labour by-election candidate Davy Russell insists his doorstep-focused campaign will prove to be the key to unlocking victory in next week's crunch Holyrood poll in Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse. He says the contest remains between his party and the SNP, despite the notable rise of Reform – adding that Nigel Farage's party will 'definitely come third' behind the two original frontrunners – and adds that he is confident the campaign strategy of repeatedly visiting thousands of voters' homes will deliver victory on June 5. The first-time candidate has made much of his credentials as a local resident and says he would be an 'outspoken' MSP for his home constituency, telling the Hamilton Advertiser: 'I want to make a difference and I think I can make a better job' than his rivals. Mr Russell said of his highly-localised campaign: 'I made a conscious decision at the start that I was going back to basics, actually chapping doors, speaking to people and listening to what they're saying, rather than getting dragged into UK issues. 'I have fought the campaign on local issues that mean a lot to the people of Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse and it's been very effective. Social media is all personal attacks on me but they don't come up with alternative policies or programmes. They see me as a threat because I'm the one that's chapping the doors. 'The grassroots campaign is definitely working and it's a big help that I'm actually local because I can relate to the issues. I've lived here all my life and I'll be a fighter for the people of this area, who are great but have been let down because of waiting lists in the health service, the state of the town centre, the housing waiting list – there are numerous issues that need investment into the place and to invest in people.' Mr Russell said: 'The state of Hamilton town centre is a big one, in the top three of people's issues. It's needing investment, to wipe the board and start again. We should be looking at the York model where it's boutique shops, cafes, bars and bespoke shops rather than trying to compete with big out-of-town retail centres, and we need people to live in the town centres as well. 'The health board is another and a real bugbear with people is a waiting list so long that people have to pay for their own operations and procedures. The SNP has been in power for 18 years, have run out of ideas and haven't got any solutions; they promised the earth for years and delivered nothing.' He called Reform's widely-criticised advert attacking Labour leader Anas Sarwar 'shocking' and said: 'That's gutter politics. That's not who we're about. We're playing a fair campaign and that's how it'll continue. 'As far as I'm concerned, there's a two-horse race between Labour and the SNP. One lady said to me last week that 'Reform are a flash in the pan'. They're running a national campaign in a local area. Yes, they'll get some votes from people who are disillusioned, but it's not a sustainable vote and they will definitely come third in this election.' He said of the remaining campaign period that he will 'keep going because it's working', adding: 'If you'd asked John Swinney about the campaign two weeks ago, he would have told you SNP's going to win, now he's telling you it's a three-horse race – that tells you he's worrying about it. 'People feel that they're ignored and that's why Reform is on the rise. It isn't washing with the voters, and the SNP are just out of ideas – they need to get round the doors and listen to people and understand how they're feeling.' Mr Russell told voters: 'If I'm elected their MSP I'll be here for them, I'll listen to them and I'll deliver for them – I'll fight for what's right. I'm not a career politician and what you see is what you get – no frills, no airs and graces, just a genuine person. 'The way I'm working the campaign is the way to go. I'm doing it the way used to be done and people are responsive to it.' Party leader Mr Sarwar has been a regular visitor to the constituency during the two-month campaign. He condemned Reform's campaign adverts as 'blatantly racist' and challenged leader Nigel Farage to a debate in the town ahead of Thursday's polling day. He told the BBC: 'This man has no idea where Hamilton is. Nigel Farage should ask his chauffeur to put Hamilton into Google Maps, come up here. I'll challenge him any time, any place in Hamilton. He can challenge me on my views, I'll challenge him on his views. And you can see that the people of Scotland will utterly reject him.' The full list of 10 candidates in the Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse by-election is: Collette Bradley (Scottish Socialist Party); Andy Brady (Scottish Family Party); Ross Lambie (Reform); Katy Loudon (SNP); Janice MacKay (UKIP); Ann McGuinness (Green); Aisha Mir (Liberal Democrats); Richard Nelson (Conservative); Davy Russell (Labour); and Marc Wilkinson (independent). * Don't miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here.
North Wales Chronicle
2 days ago
- Politics
- North Wales Chronicle
Labour's Hamilton by-election candidate ‘in it to win it', says Rayner
The Deputy Prime Minister visited the Holyrood constituency to campaign on Thursday, but protesters forced her to change the location of planned media interviews. Voters go to the polls on June 5 in the by-election in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse constituency, which was called following the death of SNP MSP Christina McKelvie. SNP leader John Swinney has appealed to Labour supporters to back his party in order to defeat Nigel Farage's Reform. Scottish Labour's campaign for the seat has also come under scrutiny as candidate Davy Russell refused to take part in a TV debate ahead of the ballot and did not appear on a morning radio show. Speaking to journalists during her trip, Ms Rayner said Mr Russell is a 'local person who has lived here all his life, he really believes in championing his community'. Asked about suggestions Labour could finish third behind Reform, she said: 'Davy Russell's in it to win it. He wants to be here, not for the short-term, but he's been serving his community here for 45 years. 'Once the by-election is over, he'll be here still serving his community, that's what this campaign is about, it's a grassroots campaign.' The Deputy Prime Minister said she has not seen a campaign video by Reform attacking Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar and accusing him of prioritising the Pakistani community. The online ad – which the SNP and Labour have demanded be removed by Meta – shows clips of Mr Sarwar calling for more representation of Scots with south Asian heritage, although he did not say he would prioritise any one group. Ms Rayner repeated her attacks on Mr Farage, calling him a 'snake oil salesman that just wants to sow division'. Reform UK has defended the video and said it was merely highlighting Mr Sarwar's own words. Asked about the protests which led to her planned media interviews moving locations, Ms Rayner said: 'I know that those protesters are upset about what's happening in the situation in Gaza, and that situation is intolerable, and I completely understand why people are upset about that.'
The Independent
2 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Labour's Hamilton by-election candidate ‘in it to win it', says Rayner
Angela Rayner has insisted Scottish Labour's candidate in the Hamilton by-election is 'in it to win it', despite claims the race has become a contest between the SNP and Reform UK. The Deputy Prime Minister visited the Holyrood constituency to campaign on Thursday, but protesters forced her to change the location of planned media interviews. Voters go to the polls on June 5 in the by-election in the Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse constituency, which was called following the death of SNP MSP Christina McKelvie. SNP leader John Swinney has appealed to Labour supporters to back his party in order to defeat Nigel Farage's Reform. Scottish Labour's campaign for the seat has also come under scrutiny as candidate Davy Russell refused to take part in a TV debate ahead of the ballot and did not appear on a morning radio show. Speaking to journalists during her trip, Ms Rayner said Mr Russell is a 'local person who has lived here all his life, he really believes in championing his community'. Asked about suggestions Labour could finish third behind Reform, she said: 'Davy Russell's in it to win it. He wants to be here, not for the short-term, but he's been serving his community here for 45 years. 'Once the by-election is over, he'll be here still serving his community, that's what this campaign is about, it's a grassroots campaign.' The Deputy Prime Minister said she has not seen a campaign video by Reform attacking Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar and accusing him of prioritising the Pakistani community. The online ad – which the SNP and Labour have demanded be removed by Meta – shows clips of Mr Sarwar calling for more representation of Scots with south Asian heritage, although he did not say he would prioritise any one group. Ms Rayner repeated her attacks on Mr Farage, calling him a 'snake oil salesman that just wants to sow division'. Reform UK has defended the video and said it was merely highlighting Mr Sarwar's own words. Asked about the protests which led to her planned media interviews moving locations, Ms Rayner said: 'I know that those protesters are upset about what's happening in the situation in Gaza, and that situation is intolerable, and I completely understand why people are upset about that.'
