A LABOUR MSP who has publicly called for his party leader to quit has called on his colleagues to ask themselves “whether they want to do something about it” amid fears of a wipeout at next year’s election.
Daniel Johnson, the party’s MSP for Edinburgh Southern, has suggested more MSPs are privately fed up with Mr Leonard’s leadership, as are party members, who are frustrated with inability.
Mr Johnson has joined James Kelly and Jenny Marra in calling for Mr Leonard to quit as party leader and let someone else lead Scottish Labour into next May’s Holyrood election.
He said: “I think we have just got to the end of our tethers and we are looking at an election disaster next year.
“There’s a huge amount of anxiety in the wider party. I receive daily messages from party members.
“My worry is that we actually go down to a single digit percentage point at the next election, which is inconceivable for the Scottish Labour party.
“I’m not prepared to sit by and not speak out – it's now or never, really there is no time as we prepare for the election.”
Mr Johnson said that concerns have been raised in private with Mr Leonard for weeks but have been ignored and there “comes a point when we don’t have any other options” but to speak out publicly.
He added: “There’s examples where other party leaders come in and turn things around in a short order.
READ MORE: Three Labour MSPs tell Richard Leonard to quit to avoid 'catastrophic' election result
“This is a signal of how bad things are. James and Jenny and myself are not known for causing party trouble but it shows just how serious the situation has become.”
Mr Johnson has called on his MSP colleagues to “reflect on what the situation is and whether they want to do something about it”.
He added: “If we look at the UK election result last year, it was our worst result up here in around 100 years and even then we got two MPs compared to the one very good MP we have now.
“Frankly, I don’t think it’s credible to continue and I don’t think he has the capacity to turn it around.
“This is not particularly political – I don’t have a particular issue with the leader being on the left. It’s more about effectiveness and the ability to connect with the public.
“I think Richard is just not capable of identifying a genuine alternative.”
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