Can Labour Win Back Scotland? (Anas Sarwar)
4/19/20261 hr 2 min
Does the Leader of Scottish Labour regret calling for Keir Starmer to resign over his appointment of Peter Mandelson as US Ambassador? In the upcoming election, would he consider putting Scottish Labour into a coalition with the Reform Party to defeat the SNP? How does he plan to tackle the rise of Islamophobia and the politics of despair that are increasingly gripping Scotland and the UK?
Rory and Alastair are joined by Anas Sarwar, Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland, to discuss all these questions and more.
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First 90 secondsAlastair Campbell· Host0:00
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Rory Stewart· Host0:12
You did call for the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, to resign, right? I mean, that's a big deal for a Labour leader in Scotland.
Anas Sarwar· Guest0:21
I was making it abundantly clear that my first priority and my first loyalty is to my country, Scotland, and frankly, I don't really care what people in Westminster think. I only care what people in Scotland think.
Alastair Campbell· Host0:30
You, you must care who the Prime Minister is.
Anas Sarwar· Guest0:32
Look, I'm not doing it to run against a UK Labour government. I'm running against a Scottish SNP government. Let's be honest. Are we spending every penny of public money well? We're not. We will demonstrate to the rest of the UK how you can win in the politics of hope and unity, not feed off the politics of despair.
Rory Stewart· Host0:48
I guess you're very politely skirting around one of the massive things [laughs] which is you called- I'm happy not to be polite, Rory, and don't let me skirt.
Anas Sarwar· Guest0:55
Cut to the chase. I'm happy to cut to the chase.
Rory Stewart· Host0:57
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