SCOTTISH Labour is targeting its resources on the party's three most senior candidates in a desperate bid to avoid a wipeout at the general election.
Sources say the party has written off nearly 75% of its seats in Scotland and is focused on saving the careers of leader Jim Murphy, shadow foreign secretary Douglas Alexander and veteran Margaret Curran.
However, a senior party insider said Curran's Glasgow East seat was lost "long ago" and is angry she is still receiving "special treatment".
Labour holds 40 of the 59 Scottish constituencies at Westminster, but a flurry of opinion polls has predicted huge gains for the SNP this week.
Some forecasts have Labour being reduced to single digits, while an Ipsos MORI survey predicted that the party would lose all its seats.
The Sunday Herald can reveal that Labour strategists believe around 30 seats, including West Dunbartonshire, which Gemma Doyle won in 2010 with a 17,408 majority, are lost.
The party wants to avoid catastrophe by holding on to the so-called "big three".
In East Renfrewshire, a huge squad of activists has poured into the constituency to save Murphy, who took over from Johann Lamont as leader in December.
His seat is now top of the league table for voter contacts made by constituency Labour parties, a sign that holding East Renfrewshire is deemed the top priority.
A poll last week by Lord Ashcroft revealed the SNP lead in East Renfrewshire had fallen from 9% to 3%, a fall credited to Tory voters switching to Murphy.
Alexander's Paisley and Renfrewshire South seat, which Labour won in 2010 with a 16,614 majority, is also getting special treatment.
Some Labour candidates are not receiving the help of any dedicated party organisers, but it is understood that Alexander is benefiting from at least two of the prized staffers.
Murphy also paid a high-profile visit to the constituency on Friday by visiting the Phoenix Honda car dealership.
Curran, who won Glasgow East with a 11,840 majority, is the third candidate to receive special help in the form of visits by shadow cabinet colleagues.
In the last week alone, UK Labour leader Ed Miliband and shadow energy secretary Caroline Flint have all fronted events in Curran's patch.
This has followed a pattern throughout the campaign, insiders say, of the former MSP being near the front of the queue for support.
One source said: "Glasgow East was lost long ago, but Margaret fights for resources. It has really annoyed some people who are sitting on bigger majorities, but who don't get the same attention. It's special treatment."
Other than Curran, Murphy and Alexander, Labour insiders are hopeful candidates Tom Greatrex, Tom Clarke, Willie Bain and Ian Murray will hold on.
SNP General Election Campaign Director Angus Robertson said: "In the last few days, Labour's campaign in Scotland has imploded - with Ed Miliband suggesting to voters in Scotland that he'd rather stand aside and usher in another five years of Tory government than work with the SNP to keep them out. Jim Murphy's negative message has completely failed to resonate with people in Scotland."
A Scottish Labour spokesman said: "This is nonsense. This is the biggest campaign in the history of Scottish Labour. There are full time organisers across the country and the level of traditional and digital campaigning has never been so high. In the coming days we will deliver 1.5 million leaflets across Scotland."
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