Crunch time

This group has got itself established within the Labour Party in an attempt to pressure Labour to increase its proposed devolved powers.

This group is conspicuous by its title, which reveals much about the Labour Party in Scotland, considering some past and present MSPs were in attendance at the inaugural meeting.

Are deeper issues present, including the Labour Party’s missed opportunity to re-establish itself in its homeland of Scotland?

The very title “Labour for Scotland” would indicate some underlying tensions not only between the Labour Party in Scotland and the rest of the UK, but also within the Labour Party in Scotland.

But how did the party which, for most of my life was seen as the party of the working classes of Scotland, find itself in this position of factions being created and looking very precarious regarding the 2015 Westminster election?

Could it be as a result of the biggest public engagement in politics for decades or could it be because for decades the  Labour Party in Scotland  believed that no matter what policies it adopted, it could  always rely on Scotland to stand firm for it?

Politics in Scotland are a-changing and Labour in Scotland could pay a heavy price for jumping into bed with the party most disliked in Scotland, the Conservatives.

Voters will not forget and  Labour MPs may well be looking for new careers next year as a  result of their actions.

Catriona C Clark

Hawthorn Drive

Falkirk