OPINION: Politics needs old-fashioned values and public service not the career ladder climbing of Labour leader Anas Sarwar in the undemocratic House of Lords
Published:09:00, 25 July 2026Shetland MSP Hannah Mary Goodlad. On Tuesday night it was announced that Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar will be packing his bags and heading to London to take up a seat in the. . .
Published:09:00, 25 July 2026Shetland MSP Hannah Mary Goodlad. On Tuesday night it was announced that Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar will be packing his bags and heading to London to take up a seat in the House of Lords and a role in the UK government. It comes just weeks after campaigning in a Holyrood election while arguing against the unelected and undemocratic House of Lords. I don’t know about you, but I’m becoming pretty fed up with this type of politics. The politics of opportunism. The politics of always asking, “What’s next for me?” rather than, “What’s best for the people who elected me?”. Anas Sarwar is joining the House of Lords. Photo: James MackenzieAt its heart, politics is about service - or at least it should be. It is about putting your constituents’ needs before your own wants. That’s not to say politics should be without ambition. Ambition is healthy. But we should be clear about where that ambition lies and, more importantly, who it is for. Too often, politics feels like a career ladder rather than a calling to public service. Westminster today. Holyrood tomorrow. A peerage after that. Somewhere along the way, the people who put their trust in you can begin to feel like an afterthought. The House of Lords is part of that wider problem. Whatever your constitutional views, surely, we can all agree that those who make our laws should be chosen by the people they represent, not appointed behind closed doors. People will have different views on the SNP, and that’s perfectly fair. But one thing is difficult to dispute: for decades, the SNP has consistently refused to take seats in the House of Lords as a matter of principle. Successive opportunities have been declined because the party believes those who make our laws should derive their authority from the ballot box, not by political appointment. Whether you agree with that position or not, there is something to be said for sticking to a principle, even when it means turning down status, influence and personal advancement. We need a politics that values service over self-interest. A politics where the greatest honour is not an appointment to an unelected chamber hundreds of miles away, but the privilege of continuing to represent the community that first placed its trust in you and put an X in the box beside your name. Call me old-fashioned, but maybe old-fashioned values are exactly what our politics needs. Do you want to respond to this article? If so, clickhereto submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.