Questions are mounting over Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar as the SNP calls on him to explain why Pam Duncan-Glancy MSP remains within the Labour Party despite maintaining a friendship with a convicted sex offender.
The issue has been raised ahead of First Minister’s Questions, with SNP figures arguing that Sarwar’s handling of the matter raises serious concerns about judgement, leadership and standards within his party.
The SNP says Sarwar has continued to allow Duncan-Glancy to sit as a Labour MSP while offering what they describe as excuses rather than clear answers, leaving the public in the dark over how Labour is applying its own ethical standards.
The controversy is the latest in a series of high profile conduct issues to surround Scottish Labour in recent months, at a time when the party has also faced internal tensions at both Holyrood and Westminster.
SNP figures argue that the situation has contributed to growing unease about the culture within the Labour Party under Sarwar’s leadership, particularly when measured against the standards Labour frequently demands of others.
Commenting, SNP MSP Rona Mackay said:
“Anas Sarwar’s must ditch the excuses over Pam Duncan-Glancy and her continued friendship with a convicted sex offender, if this was any other party Anas Sarwar would be screaming about it till he was blue in the face.
“Ahead of First Ministers Questions today a cloud is coming down over Anas Sarwar and it is in the public interest for him to come clean and tell people why he continues to allow Pam Duncan-Glancy to remain a Labour Party MSP.
“Today is the day that Sarwar must finally stop running from scrutiny and answer to the public about why the friend of a convicted child sex offender remains in his ranks.”
The SNP says the matter is now firmly one of public interest and accountability, and that the Labour leader must address it directly rather than deflecting or minimising concerns.
With First Minister’s Questions approaching, the party has made clear it expects Sarwar to offer a clear explanation for his decision making and the standards he believes should apply within Scottish Labour.
