‘Scottish Labour is tearing themselves apart before their leadership contest has even begun’

Scottish Labour is tearing itself apart before the party’s latest leadership contest has even started.

A party that has lost five Holyrood elections in a row to the SNP and cannot connect with voters is once again staring at its own navel.

The smart money was on a three-way contest between moderate Michael Marra, former council chief Joe Fagan and left-winger Monica Lennon.

But there is a growing sense that Lennon, despite being the candidate party figures believe would have the most reach with voters, will fail to make the ballot.

Contenders need three Labour MSPs and three Scottish Labour MPs to become candidates and every indication is that Lennon is struggling.

Part of her likely exclusion reflects the rough and tumble of politics.

Marra has been preparing for a contest for months and has activated his machine to hoover up nominations.

Lennon’s return to Holyrood after Anas Sarwar’s resignation from Holyrood was accidental and she does not have the infrastructure to compete.

Marra does not want her on the ballot and his supporters have been energetic in ensuring this becomes a reality.

Personality clashes are another factor behind Lennon’s inability so far to attract the necessary support.

She had a reputation as a moderate when she was first elected in 2016, but she alienated this bloc when she backed Jeremy Corbyn.

Her natural supporters in the Scottish Labour group – left wingers Katy Clark and Carol Mochan – are also withholding their support.

Mochan fundamentally differs from Lennon on trans rights while Clark inexplicably believes that she should be the left wing candidate in the race.

The end result is a likely all-male ballot between Fagan and Marra to succeed Anas Sarwar.

Even the staunchest supporters of both these contenders admit they have baggage.

Marra is an able politician who would be better than Sarwar at carving out dividing lines with the SNP.

But he will also struggle to shrug off his association with past Scottish Labour failures.

He was a senior adviser to hapless former leader Iain Gray, whose terrible Holyrood campaign led to an overall SNP majority in 2011.

Marra was also the architect of Labour’s dismal Holyrood manifesto in May – a document that failed to include a single eye-catching policy.

Scottish Labour has lost five in a row to the SNP and Marra was knee-deep in two of them.

Fagan also has a number of downsides.

As leader of South Lanarkshire council, he was suspended for two months for disclosing confidential information to the press.

He is also seen as a puppet of deputy leader Jackie Baillie, who critics believe wants Fagan to win so she can hold on to her power.

Senior party insiders also struggle to see the rookie MSP as a credible figure to lead Labour so soon into his Holyrood career.

One said: “Is he really going to be our candidate for First Minister? Will voters be able to picture him walking into Bute House? He is not a big league politician.”

Anger is also rising with Sarwar for plunging his party into a summer of infighting and rancour.

Party activists wanted the priority for Scottish Labour to be a review of their catastrophic election defeat in May.

The review is now irrelevant and the big structural issues Scottish Labour needs to consider will be shelved.

Senior party figures believe that whoever wins will lead a divided, inwardly-looking group at Holyrood.

And few people believe the victor will lead Scottish Labour into the 2031 Holyrood election.

The party of John Smith and Donald Dewar was already circling the drain before the leadership contest.

A pointless scrap that treats voters as an afterthought could see Scottish Labour vanish forever.