Keir Starmer should be brave and scrap Lords in first term, says Scottish Labour chief
The Scottish Labour leader said his party should be 'brave' and act to reform the upper chamber when it has 'maximum political capital' in the early years of winning power
The Mirror has a long-running campaign to abolish the unelected House of Lords.
Mr Starmer said at the time he will consult on the plans and that it would be Labour's hope to usher in a new elected chamber within the first five years of being in power. But reports earlier this month claimed the proposals may not be a first-term commitment.
Quizzed on his stance by the Labour peer Baroness Pauline Bryan at the event, Mr Sarwar added: "You have your maximum political capital in the early days of a new government. "If you are going to do big, significant reform I think you have to do it early in the first term."
Mr Sarwar, who became Scottish Labour leader in 2021, also said winning seats north of the border would help deliver a UK Labour government. Reflecting on his party's stunning success at the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election earlier this month, he described it as a "huge leap forward" for Labour.
But he said Scottish Labour "still has a mountain to climb" ahead of the next general election and Scottish Parliament vote. The Scottish Labour leader claimed the "public has decided they want the Tories to lose" and are "beginning to decide they want the SNP to lose" north of the border. He added: "We still have work to do for them to believe Labour deserves to win and that I think is the big challenge for us"
The Scottish Labour leader said his party should be 'brave' and act to reform the upper chamber when it has 'maximum political capital' in the early years of winning power
The Mirror has a long-running campaign to abolish the unelected House of Lords.
Political Correspondent
Keir Starmer should abolish and replace the House of Lords in the first five years of a Labour government, Anas Sarwar has said.
The Scottish Labour leader said his party should be "brave" and act when it has "maximum political capital" in the early years if it wins power. He told an audience at the Institute for Government: "We have got to reform the House of Lords to make it more representative of the nations and regions.
Questioned on whether it should be within the first term, he said: "Look, for me, absolutely. I think you have your greatest political capital and your greatest ability to do big, bold, radical reform in your first term than you do in your second term. "I think if we're going to do big, brave reforms we should be brave enough to do them in the first Parliament".
Former PM Gordon Brown authored a report for Labour last year with proposals to scrap the "indefensible" House of Lords. It said the upper chamber - one of the world's largest second chambers - should be replaced with a new Assembly of the Nations and Regions of a much smaller size than the Lords at present. The Mirror has a long-running campaign to abolish the unelected House of Lords.
Keir Starmer should abolish and replace the House of Lords in the first five years of a Labour government, Anas Sarwar has said.
The Scottish Labour leader said his party should be "brave" and act when it has "maximum political capital" in the early years if it wins power. He told an audience at the Institute for Government: "We have got to reform the House of Lords to make it more representative of the nations and regions.
Questioned on whether it should be within the first term, he said: "Look, for me, absolutely. I think you have your greatest political capital and your greatest ability to do big, bold, radical reform in your first term than you do in your second term. "I think if we're going to do big, brave reforms we should be brave enough to do them in the first Parliament".
Former PM Gordon Brown authored a report for Labour last year with proposals to scrap the "indefensible" House of Lords. It said the upper chamber - one of the world's largest second chambers - should be replaced with a new Assembly of the Nations and Regions of a much smaller size than the Lords at present. The Mirror has a long-running campaign to abolish the unelected House of Lords.
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar with Keir Starmer after the Rutherglen by-election victory
Mr Starmer said at the time he will consult on the plans and that it would be Labour's hope to usher in a new elected chamber within the first five years of being in power. But reports earlier this month claimed the proposals may not be a first-term commitment.
Quizzed on his stance by the Labour peer Baroness Pauline Bryan at the event, Mr Sarwar added: "You have your maximum political capital in the early days of a new government. "If you are going to do big, significant reform I think you have to do it early in the first term."
Mr Sarwar, who became Scottish Labour leader in 2021, also said winning seats north of the border would help deliver a UK Labour government. Reflecting on his party's stunning success at the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election earlier this month, he described it as a "huge leap forward" for Labour.
But he said Scottish Labour "still has a mountain to climb" ahead of the next general election and Scottish Parliament vote. The Scottish Labour leader claimed the "public has decided they want the Tories to lose" and are "beginning to decide they want the SNP to lose" north of the border. He added: "We still have work to do for them to believe Labour deserves to win and that I think is the big challenge for us"
No comments:
Post a Comment