Scottish Labour leadership hopefuls gear up for TV debate

Scottish Labour’s leadership rivals Kezia Dugdale and Ken Macintosh will debate on live television tonight, in a contest which will see the victor faced with a herculean task of rebuilding the party in Scotland.

The leadership election was prompted by the resignation of Jim Murphy after Labour’s MPs were almost wiped out in Scotland by the SNP at the general election.

One of them, Tom Harris, said the party was having a "nervous breakdown".

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Speaking ahead of the debate, former deputy leader Dugdale says the party needs renewal.

“The challenge facing Scottish Labour is immense. Nobody can be in any doubt about the mountain we have to climb to regain the trust of people in Scotland.

“We must embark on the biggest renewal project in Scottish Labour's history. From how we engage with people in their communities to the way we hold the SNP Government in Edinburgh to account, big changes are needed,” she said.

Dugdale garnered the overwhelming majority of nominations from elected members and constituency branches, but Macintosh insists his canvassing has seen positive results for him.

“This is a contest determined by one-member-one-vote and it is clear that nominations are not an accurate reflection of the likely voting pattern,” he said.

After rules were changed so organisations such as unions no longer exercise a ‘block vote’, Macintosh has been touring the country speaking to branches, he said.

“The truth appears to be that the more people hear my message, the more they are coming my way. The momentum in this contest has swung towards me.

“I think people are crying out for Labour to be more positive and to talk about Scotland's future. Not only do I intend to be more forward looking, I want to win new members and new supporters to our cause and not just rely on those who have traditionally voted Labour.”

Dugdale says the public have told her no-one understands what Labour stands for anymore.

“Under my leadership no one will be in any doubt what we stand for and who we stand with.

“The Labour Party exists to extend power, wealth and opportunity to the many, not the few. So we stand with the disabled person facing terrifying social security cuts, just as we stand with the parent who wants the very best education for their child and those who want to take a chance by setting up their own small business.”

Former Glasgow South MP Tom Harris told BBC Radio Scotland this morning the contest was like "two bald men fighting over a comb", with the problems faced by the party far too complicated than could be fixed by one leader.

"What is happening is what happens to the Labour party just about every generation - every 25 or 30 years - when we get thrown out of power we have an emotional reaction.

"This is different from the nervous breakdown the party had in the 50s, which is different from the nervous breakdown we had in the 80s, this is a nervous breakdown of a totally different order.

"The danger is that the result will be exactly the same, that we will exclude ourselves from government for the next 10 or 15 years or even longer than that," he said.