Scottish voters head to the polls on Thursday in a pivotal election that could end two decades of SNP rule. The electorate are being asked to make a clear choice, says Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar: continue with the SNP or opt for change.
Sarwar: 'I want Reform to get absolutely pumped in the election'
This Thursday, Scots will face a big choice. It's the first opportunity to change the government in Scotland for 20 years. The Scottish National Party (SNP) want this election to be about anything other than Scotland or their record. They instead want to point at Westminster.
I get that people are angry and disappointed about Westminster and Holyrood – I am too. A vote for me and Scottish Labour on Thursday is not an endorsement of Keir Starmer, and it won't be used as one. It's to change the First Minister. This vote is not about passing judgement on a government that has been in power for two years, but about 20 years of the SNP.
This is not an election without consequence, about protest, or some kind of free hit. It's about our schools and hospitals – and getting change in Scotland. After 20 years of SNP government, the results are there for everyone to see.
- An NHS that is buckling under the strain, with patients left waiting in pain and families stuck in the daily farce of the 8am scramble for a GP appointment.
- A cost-of-living crisis that has left working families feeling squeezed from every side, with childcare too expensive, housing too hard to access, and public services stretched to breaking point.
- A generation of young people who have been let down by a government that talks endlessly about ambition but has too often failed to turn that into opportunity.
- Communities that feel forgotten, town centres that have been hollowed out, and people who are paying more and getting less.
That is the SNP record. Not the mythology. Not the branding. The record. And still, after all this time, the answer from John Swinney is the same old routine: a finger pointed elsewhere, a new excuse, a fresh attempt to convince people that none of this is really his fault. Well, after 20 years, it is his fault. And it is the SNP's fault. Scotland has paid the price for their failures long enough.
There is another danger too. Reform UK has spent this campaign trying to divide Scots. Their politics is grievance sharpened into something nastier. They have run racist smear campaigns, dragged public debate into the gutter, and tried to convince people that anger, suspicion and resentment are a serious answer to Scotland's problems. They are not.
Reform offers poison, not solutions. They have nothing to say about how you get an NHS appointment faster, how you cut childcare costs, how you build homes, how you create skilled jobs, or how you make life more affordable. They want people furious, not hopeful, because hope demands ideas and delivery – and they have neither.
That is why this election matters so much. If you want to reject the poison of Reform, beat the SNP, and change Scotland, there is only one route to do it – and that is Scottish Labour. Not because of slogans, but because of the reality of how elections are won in Scotland. Only Scottish Labour can replace the SNP in the constituencies that matter. Only Scottish Labour can form a serious alternative government. Only Scottish Labour can turn frustration into something better.
I am standing to fix the mess, get the basics right, and build a better future for Scotland. That means cutting waiting lists and putting our NHS first. It means ending the 8am rush and bringing back the family doctor. It means making life more affordable, with lower childcare costs, more homes, and action on bills. It means backing Scottish jobs, creating new opportunities, and ending the waste and drift that have defined the SNP era.
You have given the SNP 20 years. Scotland has paid the price. Give me five. Five years to save our NHS. Five years to make life more affordable. Five years to show that politics in Scotland can still be about delivery, dignity and hope. On Thursday, vote Scottish Labour. Reject Reform. Beat the SNP. Deliver the change Scotland needs.
Anas Sarwar is the leader of the Scottish Labour Party.
