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Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray speaks during the Labour Party Conference at the ACC Liverpool, September 23, 2024
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THERE was a triad of Scottish leaders on the platform for the section on Scotland at the Labour Party conference last week. They probably all thought that they were the most significant person in the Scottish Labour Party.
There was the leader, Anas Sarwar, who is the public face of Labour in Scotland. There was Ian Murray, Secretary of State for Scotland and a member of Keir Starmer’s Cabinet, and then there was Jackie Baillie, deputy leader of the Scottish party, election co-ordinator and its representative on Labour’s national executive committee.
While it was only Murray and Sarwar who made speeches, the significance of Baillie shouldn’t be underestimated. She is the direct link between the Labour Party machine in London and Scotland.
It was she who brought down Richard Leonard and ensured Sarwar as his replacement. She played a leading role in candidate selection and as deputy leader, is a key player in both the Scottish parliamentary party and the Scottish executive committee.
The speeches from Murray and Sarwar were short and almost totally devoid of policy. Murray went first, trying to make the case for his role as secretary of state.
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