A MAJOR SNP leadership hustings organised by the SNP Trade Union Group (TUG) and The National has been confirmed to go ahead after all three candidates confirmed their attendance.
Ash Regan, Humza Yousaf and Kate Forbes will all face questions on key issues facing working people and communities across Scotland, in an event chaired by the STUC’s general secretary Roz Foyer.
The event will be professionally livestreamed across The National’s social media feeds.
It comes after it was confirmed that at the eight regional hustings arranged by SNP there will no media invited. Forbes called on the party to reverse the policy and allow for meetings to be shown online.
The National and the SNP TUG’s hustings will be held on March 11 from 5pm in Glasgow, and our reporters will be there to bring you live updates throughout the night.
Addressing the news, Simon Barrow – the national secretary of the SNP TUG – said: “The concerns represented by trade unions are absolutely central to the debate about Scotland’s future. This is intrinsically linked to policy decisions the Scottish Government will be taking in the immediate future under its new leader, whoever that will be.
“We are especially delighted to have Roz Foyer chairing. She is an independent voice and widely respected advocate for trade unions in Scotland, and it’s especially important for us that we have the representative voice of Scotland’s workers within the room.
“This hustings is specifically for trade unionists who are SNP members, but the range of topic we anticipate being covered will be of interest to the trade union movement as a whole. We look forward to a significant, positive and topical exchange.”
Also commenting, STUC general secretary Foyer said: “While this leadership election is a decision for SNP members to take, the impact will be far-reaching and ultimately determine who leads Scotland as the next first minister.
“It’s only right that the voices of workers across Scotland are heard front and centre within this debate.
“I’m pleased to have been approached to chair this husting and look forward to all candidates setting out their positive and progressive vision for Scotland, one that values the voices of workers throughout the country and reaffirms the Scottish Government’s long-held support for our trade union movement.”
