"none of us does these things individually."
Anas Sarwar, of Pakistani descent, was named Scottish Politician of the Year for the second time.
Sarwar was given the prestigious honour in recognition of his role in spearheading Labour’s successful general election campaign in Scotland. He joined the Labour Party when he was 16.
The campaign saw the party go from having one MP in 2019 to winning 37 seats on July 4, 2024.
The Scottish Labour leader collected the top honour in a ceremony at Edinburgh’s Prestonfield House Hotel on November 21, 2024.
When collecting the award, Anas Sarwar said:
“Lots of us came up and accepted awards today, but in actual fact, none of us does these things individually.
“Phenomenal people surround us, and most often, those phenomenal people aren’t named on the ballot paper.
“They’re our teams, they’re our staff and it’s all those people that every single one of us owes a massive thank you to.”
Sarwar previously received the same award in 2022. Scottish Labour deputy leader Dame Jackie Baillie won it in 2023 as the party’s revival north of the border gathered pace.
Politics run in the family. Anas Sarwar is the son of millionaire businessman Mohammad Sarwar, the UK’s first Muslim MP.
Anas Sarwar was in the headlines when he stated that if elected in 2026, he would go against the national party and reintroduce the universal winter fuel payment for pensioners:
“A Scottish Labour government will reinstate the winter fuel payment for pensioners in Scotland.
“Scottish Labour will take back this devolved power from the DWP [Department for Work and Pensions], reinstate the winter fuel payment, and deliver a fairer system to ensure that everyone who needs support gets it.”
Some view Sarwar’s move away from the national party line as strategic.
On the Electoral Dysfunction podcast, Tory peer Beth Rigby asserted that it was politically “necessary” for Sarwar to disassociate himself from Westminster policy. However, she continued that people in Scotland see the political game.
Rigby maintained:
“People in Scotland are pretty sophisticated. They can see it for what it is.”
“They know that 35 Scottish Labour MPs voted to take Granny’s winter fuel allowance away, and then you’ve got the leader of Scottish Labour saying, ‘Don’t listen to my 35 MPs – if in 18 months time you give us your vote, we might give some of you that money back’.
“He’s right to do it, I think, politically – but there’s a healthy level of cynicism in the reaction to it.”
At the awards, Humza Yousaf was awarded the Donald Dewar Debater of the Year for his impassioned speeches about the violence and devastation in Gaza.
In a post on X, Yousaf thanked The Herald for the award as he shared an image with his children. He wrote:
“Sorry I couldn’t be there in person to collect it, I have my hands full tonight…!”
The Scottish Politician of the Year Awards are organised annually by The Herald newspaper.
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