Sarwar: Reform voters are not racist, they are ‘scunnered’ and ‘frustrated’

The Scottish Labour leader said people were “scunnered” with politics and were looking at ways to express their frustration.

He warned that Nigel Farage did not care for Scotland, but said he did not care for Mr Farage.

It comes after Reform UK spent thousands of pounds on a Facebook ad showing a video of Mr Sarwar delivering a speech in 2022, where he urged more people from Pakistani and South Asian backgrounds to get involved in politics.

It quotes Mr Sarwar as saying: “Pakistanis need (to be) represented in every mainstream political party in Scotland and across the UK.”

Another clip shows Mr Sarwar saying: “The days where South Asian communities get to lead political parties and get to lead countries is upon us.”

The clip, the beginning of which appears to have been edited so Mr Sarwar’s comments begin mid-sentence, is preceded by the words “Anas Sarwar has said he will prioritise the Pakistani community”.

The video ends with the words “only Reform UK will prioritise the people of Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse”, urging people to vote in the by-election on June 5.

The video had previously been posted by an anonymous Twitter account earlier this year and had circulated among the far right of UK politics.

Scottish Labour had described the ad as “blatant racism”.

But speaking in Blantyre, Mr Sarwar said while it was “very clear” Reform UK were using “very deliberate dog whistles”, he did not think their voters were racist.

He said: “Let me be really clear here, I think many of the people who identify with Reform, I imagine many people who are thinking about voting Reform, actually, I don’t think they’re racist, I don’t think they’re stupid, I don’t think that we should talk them down.

“People feel scunnered with politics and are therefore looking for other choices in terms of expressing that frustration.

“The best way of winning those people over is by improving their lives, and right now we have a Scottish Government that’s making life harder for people across our country, and that’s why we’re campaigning to change the Scottish Government and take our country in a new direction.”

Mr Sarwar, who was born in Glasgow to Pakistani Muslim parents, said the party was questioning whether he belonged in Scotland.

He went on: “They want to try and question my identity, my belonging and my loyalty to the country in which I was born, the country with which I identify, the country in which my children were born.

“I am a Scot, a proud Scot. Having worked in Scotland’s NHS, I want to deliver a fairer and better Scotland.

“What these guys are, are chancers who want to play on people’s fears, to divide us rather than actually deliver meaningful solutions for the people of Scotland.

“And frankly, the people of Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse will see through it. And I’m pretty confident the people of Scotland will see it too.”

The Scottish Labour leader said he believed Scotland was a diverse and “welcoming” country, as well as the “greatest country on Earth”. But he said it needed to change.

“This is a phenomenal country,” he said, “and this country needs better leadership, it needs a new government, and only I can deliver that.

“It doesn’t need the politics of Nigel Farage.

“Nigel Farage doesn’t care about Scotland, and frankly, I don’t care about Nigel Farage, and I think John Swinney is letting down Scotland, and that’s why I want to remove him from office, and that’s why I want to elect a Scottish Labour government.”

Reform UK and the SNP have been approached for comment.