Score check: What Sir Keir Starmer and Labour have done for Scotland over first 100 days

Questions over freebies, internal rows over staff, and issues of policy have created several headaches for the new Prime Minister, ones that have seen his popularity rating plummet.

In Scotland, a resounding Labour lead has collapsed. There is an accepted that Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar is no longer a shoe-in for First Minister in 2026. Instead, Westminster is seen as a potential barrier to a Scottish Labour victory, rather than a stepping-stone.

Political wins in Scotland

Stepping away from the noise, however, there are things for Scottish Labour to crow about, policies delivered or intentions made. The Prime Minister made visiting Scotland his first act after winning the general election, a sign that indicates the value his administration has put on improving its standing north of the Border.

It can also be seen in his appointments. Health may be devolved, but that has not stopped Dr Zubir Ahmed, the MP for Glasgow South West, going into Health Secretary Wes Streetings’s department as a parliamentary private secretary (PPS).

Douglas Alexander, a true heavyweight of the party, is back as a minister for trade, the role he last held in 2005. Former head of Scotland in Union, Pamela Nash, is a PPS in defence, Alan Gemell is in the foreign office, and Imogen Walker has gone to the Treasury.

Add in Michael Shanks as the parliamentary undersecretary for energy security and net zero, and it i’s hard to argue the Prime Minister has not delivered on his pledge to put Scotland “back at the beating heart” of everything the UK government does. Scottish Labour is everywhere.

The policy triumphs

In terms of policy, there has also been much to talk about, most notably the launch of GB Energy. Based in Aberdeen, the initiative promises to bring down bills, deliver jobs and put Scotland at the forefront of the global transition to green energy.

Its critics will argue there is no timeframe for bills coming down, nor specifics on the number of jobs. Estimated to create 1,000 jobs in Aberdeen, according to GB Energy’s newly-appointed chief executive, this is a clear statement of intent for Scotland, even if the scale of what it delivers is not clear.

Then there is the new Council of the Nations and Regions, which aims to reset relationships and boost growth in every part of the UK and met for the first time in Edinburgh on Friday. The council even has an experienced envoy in the Prime Minister’s former chief-of-staff Sue Gray - even if she did miss the opening summit.

The party’s 37 Scottish Labour MPs can also point to the new deal for working people, which represents the biggest upgrade to workers’ rights in a generation, while there has also been a deal with Brazil for Scotch whisky worth up to £25 million.

The mishaps

Despite this, there have been obvious mishaps. The decision to means test the winter fuel payment, according to the SNP, hit some nearly 900,000 Scottish pensioners. This has clearly damaged Labour and led to protests at the party conference. It has given the SNP a clear attack line on its main rival for the 2026 Holyrood elections.

Keeping the two-child cap on benefits will also impact Scots, because while new, the party had previously criticised the policy in opposition, even if it did not make the manifesto.

It has been the source of internal problems within Sir Keir’s party. Within weeks of winning power, he suspended the whip from seven of his MPs who rebelled to vote against the King’s Speech over its lack of a commitment to abolish the two-child benefit cap.

Abroad, the conflict in the Middle East has presented a diplomatic challenge the SNP have seized on. The UK government has urged restraint on all sides, but proven unable to secure an end to the fighting.

And most recently, at the start of this month, Ms Gray quit as Sir Keir’s chief of staff following claims Number 10 had become divided and dysfunctional under her leadership.

The bigger UK-wide picture - what was promised

In terms of the wider UK picture, only one of Labour’s commitments for its first 100 days in office made it into the party’s election manifesto – the promise to introduce legislation to expand workers’ rights, including a ban on “exploitative” zero-hours contracts, an end to “fire and rehire” and greater protection from unfair dismissal.

But the party made several other commitments, while in opposition, on what it would do in its first 100 days.

These included scrapping the previous government’s policy of deporting asylum seekers to Rwanda, reforming planning rules to increase housebuilding and end the defacto ban on onshore wind projects, holding an international investment summit, and implementing the party’s Green Prosperity Plan.

There were also pledges to hold a “rapid review” of national security threats and begin work to implement a “Nato test” on defence projects.

The government ultimately met its commitment on workers’ rights on Thursday, introducing the Employment Rights Bill just within the 100-day deadline, although ministers conceded many of the rights would not come into force until 2026.

Many of the other commitments for its first months in office have also been met. The Rwanda policy was scrapped on day one, the National Planning Policy Framework has been changed, the new national wealth fund has been launched, and work on the “Nato test” has begun.

The international investment summit has been arranged, but will take place on October 14, two days after the 100-day deadline.

In conclusion

In short, Labour has had obvious policy success in Scotland since it assumed office, but that has been overshadowed by the unpopular decisions, and rows over freebies or who is working where in Downing Street.

With the first budget of the new government so close, Sir Keir has work to do.