Scottish Labour Leader Quits for Government Job — Through Lords Seat He Once Opposed

Anas Sarwar stepped down as Scottish Labour leader in July 2026 to join PM Andy Burnham's government. Burnham plans to make him a peer — a member of the House of Lords, Britain's unelected second legislative chamber — though Sarwar called it "unacceptable" in 2022. The SNP said he lied; the Scottish Greens called him a "chancer." Sarwar was the first senior Labour figure to urge Starmer's resignation.