Former Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar takes Lords seatThe 43-year-old quit his role in Holyrood to take up a post as UK trade minister.Former Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has been sworn in at the House of Lords (House of Lords/UK Parliament/PA)PA WireGeorge Thompson4 minutes ago
Anas Sarwar, the former Scottish Labour leader, has taken his seat in the unelected House of Lords.
Lord Sarwar, who led the Scottish party for more than five years, wore the traditional scarlet robes for the ceremony in the upper chamber.
He was supported by two former Scottish Labour MPs, Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke and Lord Robertson of Port Ellen, as he swore allegiance to the King on Thursday.
The 43-year-old was greeted with a handshake from the Leader of the Lords, Baroness Smith of Basildon, as he left the chamber.
Making his maiden speech in a later debate, Lord Sarwar thanked his family and the “great people of Glasgow” for getting him where he is.
His family, including his father Mohammed Sarwar, who was the UK’s first Muslim MP, watched from the gallery.
Lord Sarwar said: “I played my part in helping the Labour Party succeed at the last general election, but our new Prime Minister must succeed, this Government must succeed, and most importantly of all, our country must succeed. I am determined to play my part in making that happen.
“There is also, in my view, a bigger fight that I can’t walk away from, and I’m determined to play my part in.
“That’s what I believe is the fight for the heart and soul of our nation – it’s about who we are as a people and who we are as a country, and for me, it actually goes beyond the usual mainstream political divide.
“And that is: who are we as a country? Do we continue to look out for and love our neighbour, or do we treat them with suspicion?
Lord Sarwar gave his maiden speech in the Lords on Thursday (House of Lords/UK Parliament/PA)PA Wire
“Are we a country that succumbs to the politics of division and hate, or are we going to make sure that we have a country and a politics that believes in unity and hope?”
He also said there had been successes in the first two years of the Labour Government, but the party did not live up to voters’ expectations, and he remains “heart-sore” at the outcome of the Scottish election this year.
Addressing his previous calls for the House of Lords to be abolished, he said he did so “questioning the principle, not the purpose or the people”, and he continues to support a “more democratic and more representative upper chamber”.
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Lord Sarwar resigned as Scottish Labour leader in July to don the ermine and become a trade minister.
He was among the first Labour politicians to demand Sir Keir Starmer resign as prime minister in a botched move in February, which initially saw the Cabinet rally around, giving Sir Keir a temporary stay of execution.
Lord Sarwar is a trade minister in Andy Burnham’s Government (House of Lords/UK Parliament/PA)PA Wire
Following Sir Keir’s departure, Lord Sarwar was made a peer shortly after Andy Burnham entered No 10.
Lord Sarwar led Scottish Labour from 2021, a role he described earlier this year as the “hardest” in politics.
His leadership saw the party collapse to 17 seats in Holyrood in May.
First Minister of Scotland John Swinney previously accused Lord Sarwar of “hypocrisy” and an “appalling level of judgment” for taking the peerage.
“He said before the (Holyrood) election he had absolutely no interest in going to the House of Lords, he only wanted to be first minister of Scotland.
“Then, after the election, Anas Sarwar has accepted a place in the House of Lords – a body, by the way, he wants to abolish.”
And an SNP spokesperson said: “Anas Sarwar will bring proper depth to the House of Lords, which is too often dominated by privately educated, wealthy men who have had it all handed down to them by their fathers.”
The result of the race to replace Lord Sarwar as Scottish Labour leader is expected to be announced on September 19, with Joe Fagan and Michael Marra in the running.
Also taking her seat on the red benches was Baroness Ruth Mackenzie of Sherwood, the director of arts at the British Council, who has been made a Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
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