Episode 27 - Steven Purcell

#27: Steven Purcell

In Episode 27 of Apolitical we speak with Steven Purcell, formerly a Labour Councillor and the Leader of Glasgow City Council. We chat about his time as Leader, the present situation faced by Scottish Labour and what an SNP-led council would mean for the city of Glasgow.

 

 

Amongst the topics we discuss with Steven on the podcast are:

• His early interest in politics and the politicians that inspired him;

• The roles he held on Glasgow City Council and his rapid progression to Leader;

• His parliamentary ambitions;

• The truth behind allegations of gangland influence on Council decisions;

• The end of his time as Leader and whether there are any prospects of a political comeback;

• How SNP-led councils could affect the relationship between the Scottish Government and local authorities after the 2017 local elections;

• Labour’s prospects of retaining control of Glasgow City Council in that election;

• The strategy he’d deploy were he Labour Leader in Glasgow today;

• Whether Councillors should be full-time positions and how that would affect the level of available talent and voter engagement with local politics;

and

• His diagnosis and analysis of the present state of play for Scottish Labour.

 

Please join us in discussing these issues or any other raised in the podcast below, or find us on Twitter at @apoliticalpod.

 

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Show Links:

Steven Purcell on Twitter
Scottish Labour
Glasgow City Council

 

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