As Scottish Labour aim for a path to power in Holyrood, one city that will be key to that goal is Glasgow.<\/p>\n
At the general election almost two years ago, the party swept the board \u2013 winning all six Westminster constituencies from the SNP.<\/p>\n
However, with polls suggesting a slump in support for Scottish Labour, can the party hope to make the inroads it needs in the nation\u2019s largest city?<\/p>\n
LabourList met with Paul Sweeney at Scottish Labour\u2019s battle bus launch in Glasgow, where Sweeney is aiming to be re-elected to Holyrood \u2013 this time as the constituency MSP for Glasgow Easterhouse and Springburn.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cWe\u2019ve got a great team of candidates in Glasgow \u2013 people with a great track record, both seasoned candidates and new candidates.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sweeney said that, for all the difficulty Labour is having nationally in polling, there is no love lost for the SNP on the doorstep.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is a real sense [that after] 20 years of SNP rule people are really scunnered with them. There\u2019s certainly challenges when it comes to the UK Labour Party. We all know about the difficulties there, but honestly, there\u2019s no love for the SNP. People are actually yearning to get rid of them.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was out in Denniston, which is normally quite strong for the SNP. I was really taken aback by the level of support for Labour. In fact, three or four people were telling me the SNP had been round a couple of hours beforehand and were getting chased off the door.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sweeney said that he anticipates that the election \u201cisn\u2019t going to be a sweeping landslide for any party\u201d, despite polls suggesting that the SNP could have a majority in Holyrood within their grasp.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a grim fight, like what we saw in Hamilton. You\u2019re probably going to see low turnout and parties winning seats on quite low margins of the vote.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be all about our ground game, and that\u2019s where Labour excels.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018The SNP have failed Glasgow\u2019<\/p>\n
Reflecting on what SNP rule has meant for Glasgow, Sweeney said Labour\u2019s record stands in stark contrast to that of the current Scottish government and the SNP-controlled city council. In particular, he pointed to the Scottish Event Campus, the site of the battle bus launch.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe SEC was a Labour project to help reboot the city after post-industrial decline. Labour\u2019s committed to investing in its expansion and to make it one of the premier events venues in Europe.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s symbolic of what\u2019s not happening under the SNP \u2013 the worst local government settlement in Scotland, in a city which desperately needs those social improvements.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe SNP have failed Glasgow. They\u2019ve been resistant to the idea of metro mayors, which have been such a success in the rest of the UK.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to push the reset button and give Glasgow back its rightful status as one of the UK\u2019s top five cities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Become a friend of LabourList<\/a> and join our community. Our friends support our vital non-factional work and get access to exclusive content and events.<\/b><\/p>\n \u2018Reform aren\u2019t going to represent the disenfranchised working class\u2019<\/p>\n Although polls have suggested a fragmentation of support among parties other than the SNP, Sweeney noted that the Scottish Greens \u2013 which have seen a boost in support \u2013 are not standing candidates in every constituency seat.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Greens aren\u2019t standing candidates in Glasgow apart from in two seats, so the left fragmentation isn\u2019t as pronounced as in others. I reckon there is a good squeeze opportunity there for someone who\u2019s looking for a progressive candidate, rather than an SNP government minister who\u2019s been presiding over austerity for Glasgow.\u201d<\/p>\n On Reform, Sweeney said Farage\u2019s campaign in Scotland has already been \u201cdiscredited\u201d, with the party\u2019s Scottish leader missing from the campaign trail while he took part in a yachting race in the English Channel.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is not someone who\u2019s going to represent the disenfranchised working class who are alienated from politics.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018Undecided voters are all in play\u2019<\/p>\n Sweeney said that there are many voters that are undecided as the election campaign kicks off, with the biggest share of those being people who backed Labour at the general election.<\/p>\n \u201cThey\u2019re sitting and watching what is happening right now. Our job is to get out there and persuade them to come out and vote Labour.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve spoken to over 4,000 people in the constituency and what you\u2019re hearing is a lot of friendly undecideds, who are not against Labour by any means but haven\u2019t fully made their minds up yet. They\u2019re all in play.<\/p>\n \u201cI think you can see big shifts in the polling in Scotland in the next four weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n Subscribe here to our daily newsletter<\/a> roundup of Labour news, analysis and comment\u2013 and follow us on TikTok<\/a>, Bluesky<\/a>, WhatsApp<\/a>, X<\/a> and Facebook<\/a>. You can also write to our editor<\/a> to share your thoughts on our stories and share your own. The best letters are published every Sunday.<\/strong><\/p>\n Value our free and unique service?<\/p>\n LabourList has more readers than ever before – but we need your support. Our dedicated coverage of Labour’s policies and personalities, internal debates, selections and elections relies on donations from our readers.<\/p>\n