One of the candidates vying for Scottish Labour’s leadership has received the endorsement of MSP Paul Sweeney, who has confirmed he will not be running himself.
Mr Sweeney backed Joe Fagan to replace Anas Sarwar as the party’s leader north of the border.
North East Scotland regional MSP Michael Marra, South Scotland regional MSP Mr Fagan and Monica Lennon, who is replacing Mr Sarwar as a Glasgow region MSP, have all announced their intentions to run for the job.
Mr Sarwar quit as Scottish Labour leader and an MSP in order to take up a role in Andy Burnham’s government via the House of Lords.
In his endorsement of Mr Fagan, Mr Sweeney said he had “thought long and hard” about seeking nominations himself, but had ultimately decided not to stand.
He said: “That has not been an easy decision.
“I believe Scottish Labour needs to rediscover its confidence as a party of work, industry, housing, public services and community power.
“We need to speak again for the places that built Scotland, and for people who feel politics has become too distant from their lives.
“For me, the candidate best placed to carry that argument is Joe Fagan.”
Mr Fagan, a former leader of South Lanarkshire council, welcomed his colleague’s support.
He said: “Paul understands that Scottish Labour cannot be a party of the Holyrood bubble.
“We have to bring our party back to the service of our movement and the people of Scotland.”
All three leadership contenders have also written for the Scotland on Sunday newspaper, setting out their pitches to party members.
Mr Fagan appeared to take a swipe at the previous leader by saying “I am not building the kind of career that ends in ermine”.
Ms Lennon said she wanted to see a “big tent” party and an end to internal disputes.
She said: “First, the factional infighting must end.
“Insiders who value personal loyalties over progressive action have often underestimated their colleagues.
“I’ve felt that, too.”
On Sunday, Ms Lennon posted on social media saying there should be no “coronation or a contest without women”.
She said: “This ‘contest’ reeks of misogyny and male entitlement.
“That’s the road to nowhere.
“We’re not here for a social life or to win an occasional debate.
“We were created to win power for working class communities and lead in government, not from the gutter.”
Mr Marra said the party had not been clear enough in its offer to voters ahead of the Scottish Parliament election, when it fell to 17 MSPs.
He said: “Highlighting the incompetence of the SNP is not an argument for why people should put their faith in Scottish Labour instead.
“People have seen what the SNP has done or hasn’t done with power for almost 20 years – people wanted to know what Scottish Labour would do tomorrow if we won power and that just wasn’t clear enough.
“What I want is for our party’s goals to become obvious and unmistakable.”
