Ed Miliband is under increasing pressure as two polls revealed Labour could lose dozens of seats at the next election and the Scottish Labour deputy leader said he is quitting.
Anas Sarwar announced his resignation as a poll by Ipsos Mori found Labour would be left with only four of its current 40 seats if a general election was held tomorrow.
The poll, for STV, found that 52% of the electorate would vote for the Scottish National Party (SNP).
And a YouGov poll of Scottish voters put SNP support on 43% at the election – up from 20% in 2010 – and giving the party a 16-point lead over Labour.
Glasgow Central MP Mr Sarwar is currently interim leader of the party following the dramatic resignation of Johann Lamont, who directed a stinging attack at her Labour colleagues in Westminster when she resigned.
Mr Sarwar announced on Thursday night: “I have come to a decision I believe is in the best interest of the Scottish Labour Party.
“It’s my intention to hand over the leadership to a new team on December 13. This will allow the Scottish Labour Party, its members and affiliates the opportunity to not only elect a new leader but a new leadership team focused on winning in 2016.”
Mr Sarwar’s resignation comes after fellow MP Jim Murphy announced he was entering the leadership race against MSPs Neil Findlay and Sarah Boyack.
Speaking at a Scottish Labour gala dinner in Glasgow on Thursday night, Ed Miliband said the general election battle “is no tougher than the fights we have faced in the past”.
“We meet here after a tough week for our party in Scotland and after an extraordinary year when Scotland has gone through a profound debate about its future,” he said.
“We are just over six months from the general election. I look forward to working shoulder to shoulder with whoever the party in Scotland elects as leader to win that election.
“We face a tough fight but no tougher than the fights we have faced in the past.”
The Ipsos Mori poll found Labour on 23%, the Conservatives on 10%, the Liberal Democrats on 6%, the Greens on 6% and others on 3%.
The findings mean the SNP could win 54 seats at Westminster, with Labour taking four and the Liberal Democrats only one, according to the Electoral Calculus website.
The YouGov poll puts the SNP on 43% at the next general election, Labour on 27%, Conservatives on 15%, Lib Dems on 4% and others on 11%.
Labour currently has 40 Scottish seats at Westminster compared with the SNP’s six. The Lib Dems have 11 MPs in Scotland.
The poll claimed Mr Murphy is among those who would lose their seats.
SNP deputy leader Nicola Sturgeon said the poll result showed that “more and more people are choosing to put their trust in the SNP as disillusion with the entire Westminster establishment grows”.
Source Article from https://uk.news.yahoo.com/poll-shows-big-losses-labour-scotland-195613614.html
Miliband: Labour Faces 'Tough Fight' In Scotland
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