Donald Dewar would be 'very disappointed' with Holyrood today, says new biographer

Mark Peel, whose book Scotland's Lost Leader is published this week, argued Mr Dewar would be "frustrated" by the constant arguments about independence and the lack of progress on issues such as poverty.

He also said the former Scottish Labour leader would have been "devastated" by the state of his party, which returned just 17 MSPs at the election in May.

Mr Peel’s new biography sheds fresh light on the life and career of a politician often dubbed the "Father of the Nation" for his pivotal role in devolution and the creation of the new Scottish Parliament in 1999.

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Mr Dewar died from a brain haemorrhage in October 2000 at the age of 63 just 17 months after being sworn in as Scotland's inaugural first minister.

His unexpected death was widely mourned across party lines and his funeral at Glasgow Cathedral was attended by more than 1,300 people, including royalty and senior politicians, while outside thousands lined the streets. His statue stands at the top of Buchanan Street in Glasgow.

But Mr Peel's new book also details the former Scottish Secretary's flaws and failures, including his role in the fiasco surrounding the new parliament building in Edinburgh, which was eventually opened in 2004 three years late and substantially over budget. 

Asked what Mr Dewar would make of Holyrood today, Mr Peel said: "I think he would be very disappointed actually. He would be disappointed, obviously, about the fact that the nationalists have been in power for two decades at the expense [primarily] of the Scottish Labour Party.

"He would have been frustrated by the constant arguments about independence at the expense of more everyday legislation.

"He would have been frustrated about the lack of progress over overcoming poverty and things like that, and the state of the health service. I think really quite a lot. 

"And I think he would have been appalled by the whole Alex Salmond, Nicola Sturgeon conflict and the lack of transparency that we've seen in recent years. I do think actually that would have upset him a lot."

Speaking on The Steamie, The Scotsman's politics podcast, Mr Peel - who has written a number of previous biographies of political and sporting figures - said many of the ideals set out by Mr Dewar at the dawn of devolution have not been fulfilled.

"Not only would he be devastated by the state of the [Scottish] Labour Party, but I think he would really be pretty critical of the calibre of people that we've seen and the lack of ideas and all the rest of it,” he said.

"In the same way I’m sure he would be about some of the other parties, no doubt about it. He could be very critical, particularly of lack of ability, intelligence, whatever.”

You can listen to the full interview with Mr Peel on Spotify or Apple Podcasts now.