Scottish Labour hire new top spinner as start of backroom shake-up

Scottish Labour has hired a new Director of Communications as part of a new shake-up of the party’s backroom team to get it back on track after May’s poor election results.

Alan Roden has been brought in as the new top spinner for leader Kezia Dugdale, joining Labour from the Scottish Daily Mail, where he was Political Editor.

Announcing the appointment yesterday, Dugdale praised Roden’s “wealth of experience” and said that his addition will mean Scottish Labour has the “strongest possible team” to be a progressive opposition to the SNP.

The new appointment is the first of many expected to be announced over the coming weeks, as the party undergoes a re-jig of how its operation works. Some senior staff have left or retired over previous months, which Dugdale has taken as an opportunity to reshape her team. As well as a Director of Communications, the leader’s office will also be hiring a Chief of Staff and Political Director, which insiders believe will make Scottish Labour a sharper outfit in the wake of its worst Westminster and Holyrood results.

Although Roden comes from the Scottish Daily Mail, party sources pointed to his commitments to the Labour Party in the past, including in the Edinburgh University Labour Club – one common rumour suggests he was once ejected from the student union bar for a persistent rendition of ‘The Red Flag’. His reputation as a journalist has also meant there has been little grumbling from within Scottish Labour – even from elements unsure about Dugdale’s leadership so far.

“Alan brings to this new role a wealth of experience of Scottish journalism and a career reporting on local and national politics,” Scottish Labour leader Kezia Dugdale said on revealing the appointment. “He is a significant addition to our team as we prepare for elections in 2017, and building towards the UK General Election in 2020 and the Scottish elections in 2021. Scotland needs a strong Labour Party and we need the strongest possible team to hold the SNP Government to account in this new Parliamentary session.

“Alan’s experience will strengthen the Scottish Labour Party as we continue to lead the progressive opposition against the SNP Government and the Tories.”