You are here: Home » Comment »

A big step forward for Young Labour – and Scotland

November 17, 2011 5:56 pm

Author:

Tags:

Share this Article

Yesterday, supporting nominations for the Scottish Labour Leadership closed; and on that list, for the first time ever, Young Labour’s name appears.

Changes made through Refounding Labour, and agreed on at Annual Conference 2011, have meant that Young Labour nationally now have the right to endorse leadership candidates with a supporting nomination.

There have been changes made in Scotland too.  Proposals put forward by the Review of Labour in Scotland and agreed at a Special Conference of the Scottish Labour Party, mean that for the first time we will be electing a Leader and Deputy Leader of the whole
Party in Scotland.  This makes these Leadership elections even more important for the Party, especially coming after our defeat in May.

This is why I am proud that Scottish Young Labour has been the first Young Labour group to use these new rights. Our membership reflects the whole Party; encompassing young people still in school, students at university, young trades unionists and young workers.
These new rights make sure that the candidates listen to what we have to say, and that we, in turn, can properly engage with the election process.

While Constituency Labour Parties, affiliated organisations, such as trades unions and Scottish Labour Students, and now Scottish Young Labour can make supporting nominations for the candidates we recommend it is important to point out that every
member will receive a ballot paper and cast their own individual vote.

Yesterday, the Scottish Young Labour committee voted to endorse Johann Lamont MSP for Leader.  We recognise that Johann shares our concern about our future prospects as young people in Scotland today.  Our support makes clear that Johann is the candidate
with the best vision for Scotland’s young people and Labour’s future.

Scottish Young Labour have also given their supporting nomination to Anas Sarwar MP for Deputy Leader.  We are confident that Anas understands we must transform our Party and that we must rebuild and reconnect with the people of Scotland.  We know that Anas has
the energy and determination that is needed to beat the Tories and the SNP.

However the race is not over yet. Now we enter the hustings and balloting stage of the elections.  We are hosting our own youth hustings at our annual conference this weekend, where delegates will have the chance to put questions directly to all of the candidates.

The result of the Leader and Deputy Leader elections will be announced on 17th December. Whatever the outcome, we know that the process has been a massive step forward for our youth movement.

Helen Stephen is Chair of Scottish Young Labour

Related posts:

  1. The election of Wales’ third First Minister is a good step forward for Wales and Welsh Labour
  2. Labour – on your side in Scotland
  3. The state of play for Labour in Scotland
  4. Why should I vote for a Labour party bent on its own destruction in Scotland?
  5. Quote of the day – Scotland isn’t Slovenia
  • Anonymous

    Transform it into what,  you will need to explain to people in Scotland your not a carbon copy of the Miliband view, Social housing for those in work, no  social house building, making those out of work, work for benefits, so causing more people to be put out of work.

    You need to really put meat on the bones for those in Scotland who use to work in the mining and steel, that Labour has something worthy of  voting for.

    • Franwhi

      How can they be a carbon copy when the Labour MSPs in the Holyrood Parliament want to go on strike on 30th november in support of the public service workers ?  Will the London Labour lot follow suit ? Can’t see it somehow.

         

      • derek

        Wouldn’t that be a sight to see, labour MP’s standing by their convictions as affiliated trade union members. How many tories and lib/dems could they persuade not to cross the westminster picket line?

  • Hamish

    Tom Harris has no chance, not a single MSP supporter. Who would ask his questions at Holyrood? Ruth Davidson.
    Johann Lamont has a clear early lead in the two-horse race. She has many more MSPS than Ken Macintosh.  She also has Scottish Young Labour, though Ken has Scottish Labour Students.
    Crucially she has the support of the big unions.
    It’s true that she has been bold enough to talk about Labour’s role in an independent Scotland, but I daresay she will be brought back into line on that (or ‘get a doing’ as the modern parlance has it).

  • Andrew Ben McKay

    Salmond has an answer for everything and he almost mocked Gray at FMQ’s, I hope Johann Lamont can do a better job – firstly by sounding more genuine – praising the Scottish Government when they are right and trying to give back to Salmond as good as he gives out.

Latest

  • Comment Planning the revolution – Labour and the Spending Review

    Planning the revolution – Labour and the Spending Review

    By David Robinson

    In four weeks time the Chancellor will announce the results of the 2015 spending Review. There won’t be many winners but some will have lost more than others. Political commentators and discussion forums will pass judgement and public sector managers will, yet again, pick through the debris, making do and mending from what ever they can salvage. Before we get overtaken by the detail we should reflect on the bigger picture. What ever the chancellor says on June 26th it [...]

    Read more →
  • Comment A call for action at the G8

    A call for action at the G8

    By Ivan Lewis

    In less than a month’s time, the UK hosts the G8 Summit. With hunger, tax, trade and transparency all on the agenda, the UK has a unique opportunity to show global leadership on these issues. The scale of hunger is devastating. There is enough food in the world for everyone, yet 1 billion people still go hungry. 2.3 million children every year die from malnutrition – to put that in perspective, that is around 16,000 children every day. Or one [...]

    Read more →
  • News TUC suggests Football World Cup vote should be re-run – Media roundup: May 24th, 2013

    TUC suggests Football World Cup vote should be re-run – Media roundup: May 24th, 2013

    Subscribers to our morning email get the best of LabourList – including the Media and blog round up – every weekday morning. If you were a subscriber you would have already received this in your inbox. You can sign up here. TUC suggests Football World Cup vote should be re-run “The TUC along with its international equivalent – the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) – is calling on UEFA to address the appalling treatment of workers and players in Qatar and [...]

    Read more →
  • Featured A Northern Tory that Labour should be afraid of

    A Northern Tory that Labour should be afraid of

    By Mark Ferguson

    The Labour Party spends a great deal of time beating itself up over its performance in Southern England. We know it simply isn’t good enough, but we can’t seem to put our finger on why exactly that’s the case. Is it demographics? No. Culture? Perhaps. Lack of basic party organisation in some areas? It’s certainly a factor. But whilst we’re flagellating ourselves over our inability to perform south of the Watford gap (outside of London), we should remember that the [...]

    Read more →
  • Comment Featured Why we love Woolwich

    Why we love Woolwich

    By Jon Wilson

    Woolwich is an amazing place. It’s where the Labour party was founded as a mass membership organization. The Woolwich Provident was one of Britain’s first building societies. The Royal Arsenal Coop one of our first cooperative societies. Woolwich had the second Polytechnic in the country, created with the aim of providing education for working adults. Woolwich is my nearest big town centre, where I shop and go to meet friends. In the last few days, for many people, its name [...]

    Read more →