SCOTTISH Labour’s top official has been issued a “no confidence” verdict by members over an MSP selection row.
Irshad Ahmed became an MSP in May after being ranked first on the party’s regional list for the Edinburgh and Lothians, effectively ousting the party’s former MSP Martin Whitfield, in a shock result.
In the aftermath, reports claimed hundreds of his family members and friends had systematically signed up to join the party solely to back his candidacy.
Some party insiders were left furious as a result – with some also highlighting how Ahmed previously stood as a candidate for the SNP and Alba.
Now, according to The Daily Record, the local party in Edinburgh Southern has issued a “no confidence” verdict in the party’s general secretary Kate Watson for “failing” to adequately address the row.
The group passed a motion, the text of which raised serious concerns about the list selection and singled out Watson in particular.
“This CLP expresses its deep concern and anger that the general secretary of the Labour Party in Scotland refuses to answer serious questions put to her officially on behalf of this CLP on March 19 and repeated on May 2 about the deeply flawed selection process that allowed a candidate to flood his local party with new members and top the list of Labour candidates in Lothian region,” the motion stated.
“In spite of being a recent strong supporter of the SNP and Alba under not only John Swinney but also Nicola Sturgeon and Alex Salmond and in spite of having no record of non-recent Labour Party membership.”
The text added: “This CLP deplores the failure of the general secretary to respond to its legitimate questions, or provide information on five key aspects we asked about the selection of this former SNP and Alba activist.
“This CLP is puzzled that the senior officer of Scotland, whose wages are paid for by our members, can ignore our party’s constitution by failing to address the legitimate questions and concerns put forward by Scotland’s most successful CLP, especially since an unusually high number of people, with no obvious previous support for Labour joined ESCLP in 2024/5, then failed to renew their membership in 2026.”
It concluded: “This CLP expresses its no confidence in the general secretary and requests an urgent response to its two original communications and the points made above.”
A Scottish Labour spokesperson said: “This is not a legitimate motion and will not be treated as such. It is also full of inaccurate assertions.
“All selection processes for Scottish Parliament candidates, including the process for ranking candidates on the regional lists, are set out and overseen by the Scottish Executive Committee in a fair and transparent way.
“Complaints raised regarding the Edinburgh and Lothians East list selection were investigated fully by the Scottish general secretary and the UK Labour Party’s Membership and Governance and Legal Unit and a full report was delivered to the Scottish Executive Committee on Saturday March 14 which the SEC accepted prior to approving the list of selected candidates.”
