Baillie leads field in Scottish Deputy Leader race

Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, led the field as she went through to the next round in the contest to become the next deputy leader of the Scottish Labour Party.  Pauline McNeill MSP and Councillor Matt Kerr are also through.

Baillie came first in the number of nominations received from elected councillors, MSPs and MPs. She gained a total of 60 nominations; 48 came from councillors, 11 from her fellow MSPs and one from Scottish Labour’s sole MP, Ian Murray. 

For any of the candidates to appear on the final ballot paper they must now receive nominations from 5% of Scottish Labour’s constituency Labour parties or 3 affiliated organisations. They have until 14th February to achieve these nominations and the membership and affiliates supporters will vote from 21st February until 2nd April. 

Jackie Baillie said: 

“I am delighted to see so many of my Scottish Labour colleagues putting their faith in me to become the next deputy leader of the Scottish Labour Party and I thank them for their support.

Over the next few weeks, I will be travelling the length and breadth of the country, listening to the views of members and supporters. For Scottish Labour to win again, we must first understand the reasons for our losses. 

I have seen, first hand, the positive change that Scottish Labour can make to individuals, communities and our country, when we are in power. I look forward to working alongside members in the fight to rebuild our Party and regain the trust of Scots everywhere.”

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9 thoughts on “Baillie leads field in Scottish Deputy Leader race

  1. Jackie Baillie will probably lose Dunbartonshire West next year so she better make sure she is top of the list or her reign as leader may be very short

  2. This is so uninspiring. Did Monica Lennon not throw her hat in the ring? Her thinking is what the party needs at this time

  3. Which of these candidate is arguing for a separate Scottish Labour Party? He or she will get my vote.

  4. [Pointless sniping removed.]

    Note from moderator: Andy, you are welcome to comment here, but please make a substantial point don’t just use this as a Twitter-esque heckling platform. Further pointless and content-free sniping will also be removed.

  5. Einstein defined insanity as doing the same thing again & again & expecting a different result. So are Scottish Labour mad? Vote Baillie & it’s case proven! She represents the failure of the party to change and represent scottish voters and a complete lack of ability to forge policy for Holyrood. An absolute gift once again for SNP and media to bat out of the park. Party has to change and break from the past not stay in a time warp where we barely manage our decline.

    1. You do realise that for the last three years the party has been led by figures from the left, a marked shift. That you can’t tell the difference perhaps says as much about you as it does about Scottish Labour.

      1. Duncan – I do not care about weather leaders are right or left – just that they are for labour – can provide a vision and most importantly enable party to produce policies that not only the electorate can relate to but party unites around so we are all on same hymn sheet – just parroting UK party manifesto is not good enough as most is irrelevant to Scottish electorate or as last election already enacted in Scotland – As with UK party we need a leader who commands respect from party/electorate who then delivers party policy regardless of where we imagine they are on an ever changing political spectrum. From all of above Jackie Baillie does not cut it for me and we need a balance from a new generation – left or right does not matter – this viewpoint only brings more infighting and internal warfare that has crippled our party for last ten years.

        1. Well your choice is Jackie or Matt, and this is for the deputy leadership not the leadership, which is already occupied by a Corbyn loyal left-winger.

          In any event the way policy *should* emerge is via the SPF and NPF process, not by leader diktat.

          I don’t see why Jackie fails against your criteria, other than your notion that she’s not from a “new generation”. Well neither is Matt, so there you go.

  6. Baillie will be favourite, but she has been around for years without much interest in her or the policies she espouses.
    She was also sacked from the Front Bench by the present leader just a year ago. How can they work as a team (unless Leonard is getting the boot)?

    Seems like a desperate move by Labour. A “Custer’s Last Stand” without a charismatic yellow-haired leader, exotic foes and a big battle.
    If Scottish Labour disappear in 2021, it will be with a whimper, not a bang. A very small paragraph in the history books, when it could be a whole book—if you fulfilled Keir Hardies Dominion Status Home Rule dream.

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