Kezia: 'Fresh Start' For Labour

Kezia Dugdale says her election is 'a fresh start' for the Scottish labour party.

She received 72% of a vote to become the party's leader. Ms Dugdale and her new deputy, Cowdenbeath MSP Alex Rowley, have been congratulated by parliamentary colleagues including the First Minister.

Commenting on the result of the Scottish Labour leadership contest, SNP Business Convener Derek Mackay said:
 
"I congratulate Kezia Dugdale and Alex Rowley on their success and look forward to working together wherever we can for the benefit of everyone in Scotland.
 
"However, a change of leader alone will not solve the deep, deep problems which the Labour Party in Scotland now faces. Kezia Dugdale is the sixth person to lead Labour in the last eight years, and after every single one of those leadership contests,  the SNP has made the same offer to Labour – to work constructively with them to deliver socially progressive policies and to help make Scotland a better country." 

Patrick Harvie MSP, Co-convener of the Scottish Greens, said:

"Naturally I'd like to offer my congratulations to Kezia Dugdale, and to Alex Rowley as her deputy leader. But the clock is ticking for both of them, as they wait to find out whether their party will stay on the failed path defined by New Labour, or strike a radical new pose by electing a UK leader the members want but the party machine seems determined to undermine.

"There doesn't seem to be much chance of Kezia's party being able to connect with voters in time for the Holyrood election in May. Opinion polls and by-elections show support for Labour continuing to fall, while support for the Scottish Greens is steadily building. Alex Rowley is also due congratulations on becoming Deputy leader. It will be interesting to see whether he can persuade his party to back the many Green policies he supports such as bringing our railways back into public hands and ending the austerity agenda. Given the alleged plans already afoot against Jeremy Corbyn within UK Labour, we are not holding our breath for a different story in Scotland."

Kezia Dugdale told Kingdom FM News her plans for the future of the Party:

Fife MSP Alex Rowley says there's a lot of work to do to restore the party's reputation in Scotland: