Anas Sarwar has moved to distance himself from Sir Keir Starmer’s beleaguered government, insisting the Holyrood election in four months’ time was not about “choosing a UK Prime Minister”.
The Scottish Labour leader said he understood why voters were "angry, frustrated and impatient with the pace of change at Westminster" and that he was not in “denial” of the UK Government’s unpopularity.
He said he was “running to be Scotland’s First Minister in defiance of it”.
Launching what he described as the “biggest, boldest and most ambitious” campaign in his party’s history, Mr Sarwar said the contest would be a direct choice between himself and John Swinney.
“I get that, as Scottish Labour, we start this year as underdogs.
“But I say to John Swinney and anyone else who says we cannot win, whether they are other politicians, journalists, commentators or pollsters:
“Underestimate me. Underestimate the people in this room. Underestimate the thousands across the country at your peril.
“I am not daunted by the challenge. We are up for the fight, and we are determined to win.”
He also challenged the First Minister to “head-to-head” debates across Scotland.
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Labour’s polling has plummeted since the party’s victory at the 2024 general election where they won 37 Westminster seats north of the border.
Four of the last five polls have had Reform UK rather than Mr Sarwar’s party in second place.
The party is still well resourced, and Mr Sarwar told supporters gathered in the Presidential Suite at Murrayfield they had raised “almost £500,000” over the Christmas break, bringing the fighting fund to £1 million.
Mr Sarwar said this would allow the party to unleash "the most sophisticated and largest digital operation of any party in Scotland, reaching one million Scots every week.”
“I know that across Scotland people are angry, frustrated and impatient with the pace of change at Westminster," the Scottish Labour leader said.
“I do believe that no Labour Government at Westminster, however well intentioned, principled or capable, could have undone the damage of two decades in just two years.
“The UK Labour Government has many meaningful achievements which they need to shout louder about, but it is also fair to say that they haven’t got everything right.
“And there are many challenges they still must confront.
“I get it. I don’t just see it. I feel it across Scotland.
“I know the Prime Minister and the UK Labour Government are not popular with the public right now.
“So, I am not running to be Scotland’s First Minister in denial of that truth. I am running to be Scotland’s First Minister in defiance of it.”
May’s election, he added, was “not about Keir Starmer, Westminster or Nigel Farage”.
Mr Sarwar accused Mr Swinney of trying to fight the election on terrain that suited the SNP, by turning it into a protest vote against Westminster.
“John Swinney wants to make this election about anything but his record,” he said.
“He wants to make it about a government somewhere else, not the government here.
“If he believes in his record, he should defend it.
“I believe in my vision for Scotland, and I am happy for it to be tested.
“That is why I am challenging John Swinney to not just leaders’ debates, but head-to-head First Minister debates, one in every region of Scotland.
“Each debate focused on a key responsibility of the Scottish Government.
“So we can debate the SNP’s record of failure on the NHS, and my plan to fix it.”
He promised a Scottish Labour government would clear NHS backlogs, end the 8am rush for GP appointments, raise school standards, expand apprenticeships, tackle rough sleeping and return hundreds of police officers to frontline duties.
Mr Sarwar was asked if he would want Sir Keir to come up and campaign for him, given the Prime Minister’s unpopularity.
He said: “The best thing that Keir Starmer and the UK Labour Government can do is be behind their doors, in their departments, getting things right and changing our country.
“That’s the single best thing they can do for people in Scotland and right across the country.
“I am leading this campaign. I am the candidate for First Minister. I am the one that’s going to go and make the case to Scotland about why we need to take a different direction in four months’ time.”
Asked if he had a message for Wes Streeting after reports over the weekend suggested the Health Secretary was mulling a leadership bid ahead of the vote, Mr Sarwar said: “Very simple message, keep cutting those NHS waiting lists.”
