Easdales did not make policy demands with donation offer – Sarwar

The millionaire brothers who reportedly pledged a six-figure donation to Scottish Labour did not make any policy demands of the party, Anas Sarwar has said.

Sandy and James Easdale are understood to have offered a substantial donation to Mr Sarwar’s party, saying they want to help remove the SNP from power.

The Scottish Labour leader has welcomed their support, though the Greens said it showed they have become a “party of billionaires”.

Mr Sarwar said the Easdale brothers were “not willing to sit this election out”.

He told Press Association: “They’ve also made clear that they don’t agree with every decision of the UK Labour government.

“They don’t agree with every Scottish Labour policy, but they do believe we need a change of direction and they do believe that I’m best placed to deliver that change of direction.”

He said he had met the Easdales and other businesspeople regularly, adding: “In fairness to them, they aren’t making any policy demands.

“They aren’t making any policy requests. What they’re saying is – get rid of this SNP government that’s done so much damage to our country.”

The Herald reported that the Easdales felt the time was right for them to support a political party.

James Easdale told the newspaper: “The SNP have become frivolous: they can’t be taken seriously.

“We’re not pro-independence, but we wouldn’t be unhappy about it if we could be confident the country was being run competently.

“And if we were to be independent, we’d still prefer Anas Sarwar as the country’s leader.”

Scottish Green co-leader Ross Greer said the support of the Easdales, who own McGill’s Buses, showed Labour had lost touch with its working class roots.

He said: “This is no longer a Labour party that stands up for the working class, it’s a party of billionaires. Under Anas Sarwar and Keir Starmer, Labour has shown that it will bend over backwards to protect the interests of the super-rich and greedy corporations.

“The Easdales and a handful of others have made a fortune from the failed experiment that is the UK’s privatised bus network.”

An SNP spokesman said: “No amount of money can gloss over the fact that Starmer’s man in Scotland, Anas Sarwar, is the least popular leader of a political party in the country.

“The SNP is fighting fit ahead of the election, and we are proud to be Scotland’s largest political party, funded primarily by our ordinary members.

“Unlike Labour, the SNP has a proud record to take to the people of Scotland, delivering on a range of measures that help tackle the cost-of living, including free bus passes for the under 22s and over 60s, free university tuition, and abolishing prescription charges.”