The Labour MP for East Renfrewshire and shadow international development secretary Jim Murphy announced his intention to stand for the Scottish Labour leadership earlier this week.
Today, he has announced that he will resign his position in Ed Miliband’s shadow cabinet in order to concentrate on his leadership campaign.
The BBC reports Murphy’s comments:
I want to dedicate myself full-time to changing Scotland and changing the Scottish Labour Party.
It’s difficult to do that and to serve in the shadow cabinet, and therefore after talking to Ed Miliband over the past couple of days I’ve decided to stand down from the shadow cabinet.
Also in the running for succeeding Johann Lamont as the leader of Scottish Labour are left-wing MSP and Holyrood health spokesperson Neil Findlay MSP, and the Lothian MSP Sarah Boyack; the rising star MSP Kezia Dugdale has confirmed that she will run for the deputy leadership.
It’s worth watching out for who Miliband will choose to replace Murphy fronting the Dfid brief. The two MPs who are part of the shadow international development team, Gavin Shuker and Alison McGovern, were both appointed to their positions in 2013. Although Shuker has more frontbench experience, having been promoted to shadow Defra minister in 2011, McGovern served on the international development select committee. She could also provide Miliband with an opportunity to appoint another female shadow cabinet secretary, bringing him closer to his 50 per cent goal.
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