SCOTTISH Labour leader Anas Sarwar tonight claimed politics had been turned on its head after his party’s thumping General Election victory.
And he insisted he would be on the phone to Sir Keir Starmer and his Cabinet to push the case for Scotland in the wake of their landslide win.
His comments came as Labour chiefs continued to celebrate reversing almost a decade of poll defeats by securing 37 seats north of the border — well ahead of the SNP’s nine, with the Lib Dems claiming six seats to finish ahead of Tories who held five.
Mr Sarwar was all smiles in Clarkston, East Renfrewshire, as he met activists and successful local candidate Blair MacDougall, former head of the anti-indy ‘No’ campaign.
The party chief said: “It’s clear what people have said on Thursday, and this has actually turned Scottish politics on its head. I think it’s a seismic shift now.”
He claimed the “divisive language” that had been used by the SNP and Tories was in decline, adding: “That has completely shifted.
“The politics of fear and division is in retreat and the politics of hope and unity is on the rise.”
Mr Sarwar called Thursday’s vote “a stepping stone” as he appealed for more support at the Holyrood poll in 2026 to deliver more change.
He said: “Scottish Labour has not just won this election, we are not just the largest party, we have won an absolute majority and a significant majority. That shows how far we have come.”
Blasting the legacy of both the Tories and SNP in power, he continued: “The harsh reality is that whether you are Yes or No, Leave or Remain, you are still impacted by the cost of living crisis, you are still impacted by a chaotic Tory government.
“You will still, I hope, be impacted positively by now a UK Labour government delivering for Scotland.
“But you are also negatively impacted by an SNP government that has left so many languishing on NHS waiting lists.
“So I’m interested in change and delivering for the people of Scotland, regardless of the view they took on the constitution.”
The new Prime Minister will head to Edinburgh on Sunday where he’ll meet First Minister John Swinney — as the SNP continue to pore over the wreckage of their campaign.
Asked if he’d be regularly picking up the phone to Sir Keir and his new Cabinet ministers, Mr Sarwar replied: “Short answer — yes. What we have done in the last three years is strengthen that relationship.
"People can see a genuine personal and political relationship between Keir and I.
“We have also built those strong relationship with members of the shadow cabinet, now the Cabinet, who have an influence about delivery for Scotland.
“We got to work straight away on that — it’s a relationship we have deliberately worked really hard on.”
Mr Sarwar said he spoke with the new PM on the phone shortly after Thursday night’s exit poll predicted the massive Labour victory.
He explained: “We straight away started to focus on how we now have to deliver for the people of Scotland.
“I’ve had multiple conversations with many of our newly appointed Cabinet who are already focused on delivering for Scotland.
“And we will continue those conversations about how we deliver for the people of Scotland.”
Asked whether he viewed his and Sir Keir’s job in government to be about killing off independence for good, the Scottish Labour leader said simply: “No”.
He insisted that ending the constitutional debate was not his focus.
Instead, he made a direct plea to voters who had backed Labour for the first time.
Explaining that he doesn’t want to revisit the divisive questions of the past, Mr Sarwar said: “I’m not interested in pulling community against community, or Scot against Scot.
“I am determined to deliver for the people of Scotland. They deserve a UK Labour government delivering for them here in Scotland.
“But they also deserve a government here in Scotland that’s focused on delivering for them too — and that is what I’m going to do.
“I’m not going to turn my back on a single person here, I’m going to advocate for change and deliver for the Scottish people.”
Ahead of his flying visit to Edinburgh, PM Sir Keir said tonight: “Our UK Government will place Scotland back at the beating heart of everything we do.
"To the people of Scotland my message is simple and clear. You are at the heart of how we unleash prosperity across the country.
"We will rebuild a strong Scotland at the forefront of our decade of national renewal.
“My offer to the Scottish Government is the same. We can turn disagreement into co-operation and, through meaningful co-operation and a genuine seat at the table, deliver change for a generation.”
Last night a Nats spokesman said: “As the First Minister made clear, the SNP is focused on rebuilding trust with the people of Scotland by delivering on the issues that matter to them.”
Tory MSP Annie Wells said only her party would “stand up to this scandal-ridden SNP government”.
She added: “On so many issues you could barely put a cigarette paper between Labour and the SNP — with Anas Sarwar’s party voting with them nearly 100 times to help push forward their divisive agenda.