Anas Sarwar

A message from Anas

This election is about one thing – change.

And Scotland has an opportunity to lead that change.

This is an opportunity that we cannot afford to miss.

An opportunity for Scotland to not just send a message to Westminster, but to send a government.

A government with a group of Scottish Labour MPs at its heart, representing their communities and putting Scotland at the beating heart of a Labour government.

And a government that is dedicated to delivering the high-skill, high-pay jobs of the future that Scotland needs.

We are being failed by two divisive governments distracted by their own scandals and missing in action from the challenges our country faces.

From the cost of living crisis, causing economic misery, to the crisis in our overburdened NHS, making it impossible for staff and putting lives in danger, the stakes could not be higher.

But this isn’t as good as it gets. I am confident that Scotland’s best days are ahead of us and that change is coming.

The status quo won’t do. Labour is ready to deliver the fresh start Scotland needs in both Westminster and Holyrood.

This is what is on offer at this election.

More chaos and decline with the Tories and the SNP, or change with Labour.

Change to put Scotland at the heart of a Labour government on the side of the Scottish people.

Change to deliver the jobs that Scotland needs.

Change to bring down bills and support families.

Change to make work pay for working people.

This is an opportunity for change – let’s take it together.

About Anas

Anas has been at the forefront of Scottish politics for a decade, fighting for the people of Glasgow and Scotland. He is the first Muslim and person of colour to head a major political party in the UK.

He was born in Glasgow in 1983, where he still lives with his wife Furheen, an NHS dentist, and their three children.

Anas joined the Labour Party when he was 16. He studied dentistry at the University of Glasgow and worked as a dentist in the NHS in Paisley for five years. He was first elected as an MP in 2010 and was then elected as deputy leader of Scottish Labour one year later. In 2016 he was elected to the Scottish Parliament as MSP for Glasgow.

In the Scottish Parliament, he has championed the NHS and its workers. He established an expert-led workforce commission to tackle the staffing crisis in the health service, led the campaign to end the NHS pay cap, and exposed the truth behind the water infection scandal at Glasgow’s largest hospital.

After speaking about the racism he has faced throughout his life, Anas established the Scottish Parliament’s Cross-Party Group on Tackling Islamophobia and has led a campaign against hatred and intolerance.

Anas led Labour’s positive campaign for Scotland’s future in the UK – United With Labour – in the run-up to the 2014 referendum, and in 2020 was appointed the party’s constitution spokesperson. He is a proud member of the GMB MSP Group and the Co-operative Party.

Outside of parliament, he has worked on a number of charitable projects, founding Glasgow Cares and serving as voluntary president of the Sarwar Foundation. He arranged for ambulances to travel the Greek island of Lesbos to support Syrian refugees, runs an annual toybank to provide Christmas gifts for children who would otherwise receive nothing, and has supported projects for homeless people in Glasgow.

Anas has been working to rebuild trust in Scottish Labour and demonstrate that we can deliver the change Scotland needs.

Anas’s Priorities

Our party’s history was founded on the strength of the Scottish people – and that is where its future lies too.

We must capture the spirit of Keir Hardie, who founded our movement, of Donald Dewar, who turned the dream of devolution into a reality, and Gordon Brown, who led our nation’s fight against the scandal of child poverty.

This isn’t as good as it gets – we can make Scotland a country that offers opportunity and aspiration for all.

A country united by what we have in common; not what divides us.

A country with a properly funded and well-run NHS.

A country that ensures people don’t pay the price for the cost of living crisis.

A country that has our schools restored to their rightful place as some of the best in the world.

A country with millions more in well paid work, with a real plan for climate justice that makes Scotland a world-leader in renewables.

Scottish Labour – the change Scotland needs.