I have never met Anas Sarwar so I have no idea whether he would make a good leader of the Labour Party in Scotland. What I do know is that he is the victim of a crude hatchet job with a gang from his own party conspiring with sections of the media to wreck his chances of getting the job.
Believers in full blooded socialism are currently in full cry. A suddenly vulnerable Conservative Government and Jeremy Corbyn transformed from electoral liability to man of the moment. The disciples at the Labour Party conference loved it - lapping up a proper economy destroying populist programme which would have made Hugo Chavez proud.
In Scotland the decent but ineffectual Kezia Dugdale gives up the weary fight and, for a moment, Anas Sarwar is favourite to take her job. The Corbynistas panic - only a true believer must be leader in Scotland. The hatchet job on Sarwar begins.
The accusations against Sarwar are worth examination. Not because they are untrue but because they are true and show to a fair minded person that he has done nothing wrong. What they illustrate is a section of the Labour Party which would rather be led by somebody with perfect socialist credentials than somebody like Sarwar who has more balanced experience. The kneejerk hostility to business is there for all to see.
The first charge is that he holds shares in his family’s company, United Wholesale. What a bizarre “accusation”. Mr Sarwar’s forebears came to Scotland, made a go of things and there is now a company owned by members of the Sarwar family which provides services, creates jobs and pays tax in Scotland. Something to be proud of you might think. A useful background which might mean Mr Sarwar can understand how to make Labour more electable. Not a bit of it, the man is clearly a heretic - a capitalist no less.
The second charge is that he owns shares in a company registered in a tax haven. How evil, Panama perhaps? Alas no it’s just Jersey. For perfectly valid technical reasons many investments are registered in Jersey or Luxembourg - if you are a member of a pension fund (including public sector pension funds) you almost certainly have an interest in one. If you are resident in the UK you pay UK tax on the returns from an investment in Jersey. There is no scandal here - just ignorance on the part of the accusers.
The third accusation is laughable. Mr Sarwar has been accused of acting “distastefully” because he appeared to enjoy the company of a businessman whose activities have excited the interest of the law and tax authorities. This is what politicians do, they meet Saudi Princes, Russian Oligarchs and African despots because it’s their job. What was Sarwar supposed to do - spit in the man’s face?
The fourth accusation gets to the real nub of it, naughty United Wholesale, run by Mr Sarwar’s brother, apparently does not recognise a Union and has not being paying a Union dreamt up hourly pay rate called the “Real Living Wage”. Why on earth does a company with only 250 people, which allows easy communication between management and staff, need a Union to get in the way and how can the company pay higher wages when its rivals do not and which would by my calculation wipe out about a quarter of its profit? The same minimum wage for everyone is sensible, shouldering extra costs which your rivals do not is business suicide.
Give Mr Sarwar a chance, he is not guilty of anything except endeavour and common sense.
Pinstripe is a senior member of Scotland's financial services community.
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