Anas Sarwar resigns Scottish Labour leadership to join Andy Burnham’s government and join House of Lords

Anas Sarwar is leaving Holyrood to become a trade minister in Andy Burnham’s Government.

Anas Sarwar is leaving Holyrood to become a trade minister in Andy Burnham’s Government.

Anas Sarwar and Scottish secretary Douglas Alexander at Scottish Labour’s spring conference in February.Andy Burnham has been hit by a backlash after giving a life peerage and government job to Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar.Scottish Labour MPs are said to be “furious” at the move, which comes seven months after Sarwar called on Keir Starmer to quit as prime minister over the Peter Mandelson scandal.Since then, Sarwar has led Labour to its worst ever performance at the Scottish Parliament elections, where the party came a distant second to the SNP and saw its number of MSP fall to just 17.Nevertheless, he has been rewarded by Burnham, who has made him a minister for state in the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.Because he is not an MP, Sarwar has also been made a life peer so he can take up the role.He is also stepping down as Scottish Labour leader, plunging the party north of the Border into fresh turmoil.One Scottish Labour MP told HuffPost UK that the new PM’s decision had gone down “very, very badly”.The MP said: “There are 37 Scottish Labour MPs all capable of being ministers. We don’t need to import more. We are furious.”Sarwar has also been accused of “engineering” his move south with Scottish secretary Douglas Alexander, his close ally who also played a key role in Labour’s disastrous Holyrood campaign.“Colleagues believe that both Anas and Douglas have failed upwards,” an MP said.But another Labour MP said: “Good luck to Anas. He gave heart and soul to leading Labour in Scotland.“No one will take his promotion away from him so long as his first vote is to abolish the House of Lords.”Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...Starmer Insists He Wants Anas Sarwar To Be Scottish First Minister Despite AmbushKeir Starmer Lives To Fight Another Day After Anas Sarwar Ambush BackfiresHammer Blow For Keir Starmer As Scottish Labour Leader Anas Sarwar Calls On Him To Quit

Lord Anas, who has been Scottish Labour leader since 2021, was among the first to call for Sir Keir Starmer to stand down in February.

Scottish Labour is embroiled in a 'civil war' after the revelation that Anas Sarwar is to quit as leader to take up a job in Andy Burnham's government.

The new prime minister plans to make Sarwar, the first Labour figure to call for Keir Starmer’s resignation, a peerScottish Labour’s rivals in Holyrood have slammed Anas Sarwar’s shock decision to resign as leader to sit in Andy Burnham’s new government, calling him a “chancer” and accusing him of lying to voters.The prime minister plans to make Sarwar, who was the first senior Labour figure to call for Starmer to resign, a peer and give him a ministerial post at the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade. Continue reading...

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar is set to quit Holyrood to become a minister in Andy Burnham’s government.… The post How might a Scottish Labour leadership election work – and who might stand? appeared first on LabourList.

Anas Sarwar quits as Scottish Labour leader to join Andy Burnham's government and take a seat in the House of Lords, weeks after the party's worst-ever Holyrood result.

Anas Sarwar will swap Holyrood for the House of Lords and a ministerial role, leaving Scottish Labour looking for a new leader.

Anas Sarwar will swap Holyrood for the House of Lords and a ministerial role, leaving Scottish Labour looking for a new leader.

Confirmation of the appointment came after the Daily Record exclusively revealed Sarwar would join the House of Lords to take up a new role.

He hailed Andy Burnham for his ‘bold Labour vision’ as he entered No 10 this week.

Anas Sarwar is to quit as Scottish Labour leader to take up a job in Andy Burnham's new government - after having led calls for Sir Keir Starmer to resign.

Keir Starmer and Anas Sarwar share a joke with local people during a visit to a community centre in Glasgow on December 4, 2025.Andy Burnham has awarded a peerage and a government job to a senior Labour figure who called on Keir Starmer to resign.In a major shock, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar is quitting Holyrood to enter the House of Lords.He will also become a minister at the revamped Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade.Sarwar’s elevation comes despite the fact he led Scottish Labour to a disastrous result at the Holyrood elections on May 7.The party came a distant second to Labour, and saw their number of MSPs slump from 20 to just 17.However, Sarwar did break ranks in February to call on Starmer to resign as prime minister in the wake of the Peter Mandelson scandal.The disgraced former UK ambassador to Washington is accused of passing market sensitive information to the convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein when he was business secretary between 2008 and 2010.Sarwar said: “The distraction needs to end and the leadership in Downing Street has to change.“It is so obvious that we desperately need change in Scotland and in three months time the opportunity to get rid of a failing SNP government is one that is too important to be missed.“We cannot allow the failures at the heart of Downing Street to mean the failures continue here in Scotland, because the election in May is not without consequence for the lives of Scots.”Despite speculation that cabinet ministers were set to quit, Starmer managed to see off the rebellion to stay in office until he stood down last week.Burnham last week insisted he would end “factionalism” in the Labour Party.However, on Monday he axed a host of Starmer loyalists while appointing a number of his own supporters to his cabinet within hours of taking over as prime minister.Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.Related...Labour Wipes Out Reform UK Poll Lead As Party Enjoys 'Burnham Bounce'Who Is In Andy Burnham's Government – And Who Is Out?Exclusive: Andy Burnham To Slash Business Rates For Hospitality Sector

He was the first Labour figure to call for Sir Keir Starmer to quit as PM

He hailed Andy Burnham for his ‘bold Labour vision’ as he entered No 10 this week.

Anas Sarwar is set to quit as Scottish Labour leader to be a minister in Andy Burnham’s Government, according to reports

He hailed Andy Burnham for his ‘bold Labour vision’ as he entered No 10 this week.

EXCLUSIVE: The Glasgow MSP has been down in London for the reshuffle and is rumoured to have been offered a job.