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DERMOT MURNAGHAN: I’m joined now by the Shadow Scottish Secretary, Margaret Curran, she joins me from Glasgow, very good morning to you Ms Curran.  Well you heard that warning loud and clear from UNISON, if Scottish Labour doesn’t follow under Jim Murphy a radical agenda you’ll lose their support and presumably more support from the voters.  Do you think Jim Murphy is the kind of man to implement that radical agenda?  

MARGARET CURRAN: I do indeed and I do think that was a very constructive support for Jim and his election yesterday from Gordon and from UNISON because what Jim Murphy has made clear, and I think UNISON understands too, is that Scottish people need a real answer to the problems in their lives and yes, those are radical answers, those are far reaching answers.  We haven’t had enough discussion about that recently in Scotland and I think Jim Murphy’s authoritative election yesterday where he did win 40% of trade unionists against expectations perhaps, shows that Jim has got cut through in his arguments, he is a winner, he likes to win and I think he will give Scottish Labour the leadership we need at this crucial moment.

DM: But isn’t there going to be a huge contradiction in the policies that Labour nationally on a UK wide basis is offering because we’ve heard there, and you’ve endorsed it there, UNISON calling for a radical agenda, an anti-austerity agenda which you want to sign Jim Murphy up to but we just heard Mr Miliband last week didn’t we saying well the austerity has to continue, Labour supports the cuts.  

MARGARET CURRAN: Well what I heard Gordon say there is what we need to do is make sure yes, as Jim in one of his first statements yesterday was about the increase in taxes for those with the broadest shoulders. Gordon did agree that Jim’s first priority is fairness and equality but it is also having a debate about some of the policies here in Scotland because it is shocking that we after seven years of the SNP being in power, that we have kids not doing well enough in school, that we have deep problems with our National Health Service.  Gordon talked about the importance of improving public services and that’s exactly what Jim Murphy will grapple with.  You know we’ve had a …

DM: But Labour, Ed Miliband, we don’t know the depth of them or the extent but Ed Miliband supports the deficit reduction strategy.  That means cuts.  

MARGARET CURRAN: Everybody knows that you have to be responsible for public finances and there are challenges there and Labour will always be honest about that.  We had a debate in our leadership election about different options in Scotland and there were differences of opinion granted but there was a huge common ground amongst the candidates about the need for Labour to understand the issues facing the Scottish people and offer new and radical solutions to that.  Some of that is about public spending but it is also about how you reach into the services and reform those services to make them perform better, be that in housing, education and health and I think Jim Murphy has been acknowledged as experienced, has got charisma, I think he can now have a better conversation with the Scottish people than perhaps we’ve had in the past.  It’s been an interesting experience in Scotland, we’ve been through the referendum, we want to move beyond the yes and the no voters, we now want to find the common ground where we change Scotland.

DM: But he’s set himself quite a task hasn’t he?  Do you really believe this in your heart of hearts that you can go into that general election in 2015 in Scotland and Labour – and this is from Jim Murphy – will not lose a single seat to the SNP?  We and others have done the polling, 28% of Labour voters have gone over to the SNP, that equates to about a quarter of a million people – you can win every single one of them back?

MARGARET CURRAN: I have no doubt that we are facing challenges and I do think Jim can reach beyond that but I would say to the Scottish people what Jim has said which is every seat that Labour does not win in the next general election is a direct boost to David Cameron.  Even Nicola Sturgeon admits you’ve only got two choices to be prime minister at the next general election, it’s either David Cameron or it’s Ed Miliband.  If you undermine Ed Miliband and his team it helps David Cameron and that’s just the harsh reality of life so I think we can persuade people on that basis but I also firmly believe that with new policies and a new direction we can start talking about the new ideas that we have to change Scotland, I think we can have a better conversation with people.  You know it’s interesting, one of the things people tell you, even those that are angry with us, still describe themselves as Labour people.  I think we can have a better conversation with those people and I’m sure we can work together to make sure we can build a better Scotland.  

DM: Okay Ms Curran, good to talk to you, thank you very much indeed.  Margaret Curran there, the Shadow Scottish Secretary in Glasgow.