A message from Anas

Scotland is an amazing country with huge potential, but after 20 years of SNP government too many people feel our country is being held back. 

They see it in our NHS, in soaring waiting lists and the struggle to get a GP appointment. They see it in schools under pressure, in town centres that have been hollowed out, in young people priced out of home ownership, and in families who work hard but feel they are getting nowhere.

Scotland needs change.

That’s what I hear from people in communities across our great country. I hear and share the frustration of the hard-working majority, who are ambitious for their families, their communities, and for Scotland, but who are tired of broken promises and excuses. I understand why people are angry: they feel that they are paying more and getting less and that after all these years, the basics are still not being delivered. That is why it is time for change. 

Change that will deliver a new government for Scotland, one that is focused on the priorities of the Scottish people not its own agenda. A government that respects your money, values your work, and is determined to make life better for you and your family.

That is why I am standing to be First Minister. 

To fix the mess.

To get the basics right. 

And to build a better future for Scotland.

This manifesto is built on that promise.

It is a plan to rebuild our NHS and put patients first by cutting waiting times, ending the 8am rush for a GP, and bringing back the family doctor.

It is a plan to make life more affordable by cutting childcare costs, building more homes, and ending government waste.

It is a plan to give every child the best start, with breakfast clubs, better support in the classroom, and a renewed focus on recovery and standards.

And it is a plan to grow our economy, create skilled jobs, back Scottish industry, and give young people the chance to build a future here at home.

Above all, it is a plan to restore hope.

Because I believe Scotland’s best days lie ahead of us. And I believe we build that better future not by dividing our communities, but by bringing them together in common purpose to deliver something better for our country.

We are a country of talent, compassion, innovation and ambition. We have everything we need to succeed except a government prepared to match the potential of the Scottish people.

That is the change Scotland needs.

A Scottish Labour government will be relentless in the service of the hard-working majority. It will focus on delivery, not distraction. It will put country before party and the interests of the people of Scotland first.

This election is a choice between more of the same managed decline or change and a better future for our country. It’s a choice between the politics of division or the politics of hope. 

It’s a choice between stale, tired leadership that hides behind excuses, or new leadership, energy and ideas that focuses on delivering for Scotland. 

Most importantly of all it is our chance, for the first time in a generation, to vote for and deliver the change that Scotland so desperately needs. 

My promise to you is that if you put your trust in me on May 7, I will work tirelessly to make that better future for Scotland a reality.

Anas Sarwar,
Leader of the Scottish Labour Party