Call for Scottish Labour to allow pro-independence candidates dismissed as 'fantasy'

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Scottish Labour has distanced itself from reports the party could allow future election candidates to be in favour of independence.

UK leader Keir Starmer has tasked former prime minister Gordon Brown with reviewing devolution and finding ways to strengthen Holyrood while keeping Scotland within the Union.

His report - due out after May's council elections - is expected to recommend the Scottish Parliament is handed sweeping new powers.Figures close to Starmer are also discussing ways in which to position Labour in Scotland as a party of change in a bid to lure voters back from the SNP.And one source last night claimed that could mean offering greater flexibility to the party when it comes to choosing election candidates."Yes we are a pro-unionist party but we are a broad church," the unnamed Labour member told the Sunday Times."That means you could have candidates who back independence.

You don't have to have a binary position - you can have people with different stances."But Scottish Labour figures have today dismissed the idea the party could adopt pro-independence candidates.A party source told the Record: "This is fantasy."Scottish Labour is committed to fighting for Scotland's place in a reformed and renewed United Kingdom."Labour has struggled to respond to the SNP's domination of Scottish politics in the wake of the 2014 referendum.It was overtaken by the Scottish Conservatives as the second largest party in terms of MPs and MSPs after the Tories adopted what many viewed as a tougher stance against independence.Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar - who will next month mark the first anniversary of being in the job - has repeatedly stated his opposition to independence.The Glasgow MSP has argued the SNP's obsession