Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard has hired a top spin doctor to help turn around his flagging fortunes.
Andy Whitaker, who was head of strategic communications for former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, starts in post on Wednesday.
Leonard has been in the job for nearly three years, but has suffered devastating defeats at the ballot box.
Scottish Labour slumped to fifth at the European election and lost six of their seven seats at the general election.
A leaked report recently flagged up the leader’s low profile and praised the “highly effective” Nicola Sturgeon.
However, Leonard has insisted he will lead his party into the 2021 poll and Whitaker has been hired as a communications adviser to promote party policies and boost his profile.
Whitaker, 44, was a key figure in McDonnell’s team and was credited with improving his media coverage.
He spent more than a decade as a reporter based at the Scottish Parliament before working for the Jeremy Corbyn ally.
Whitaker was in post when McDonnell famously said at an Edinburgh Festival fringe event that a Labour Government would not block a second independence referendum.
It was reported yesterday that Labour MSP James Kelly was recently part of a delegation of MSPs who called on Leonard to stand down.
Senior party figures also criticised Leonard's performance to the Daily Record and are gloomy about the future.
Leonard said: “I am looking forward to working with Andy to promote the party’s radical and transformative agenda for Scotland. Now more than ever we need a Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government which is dedicated to saving lives and saving livelihoods.
“It is time to fight for Scotland’s future. And that is the fight that I will lead Scottish Labour into the 2021 elections to win: the fight for a fairer Scotland, a greener Scotland, a better Scotland.”
