Scottish Labour set timetable for new deputy leader

Alex Rowley resigned as deputy leader in December

The Scottish Labour Party has agreed the timetable for the election of a new deputy leader.

Nominations will open on 14 May and close two weeks later. Voting will close at the end of August.

The election follows the resignation of Alex Rowley in December.

The Fife MSP stepped down after being suspended following allegations that he had sent abusive text messages to a former partner. Mr Rowley rejected the claims.

Shadow Scottish Secretary Lesley Laird has been doing the job on a temporary basis since then.

The post of deputy leader is open to all Labour elected representatives in Scotland - MSPs, MPs, councillors and MEPs.

Labour's Scottish executive committee chairwoman Cathy Peattie said: "Our next deputy leader in Scotland will have a crucial role in supporting Richard Leonard as we seek to form a government at British and Scottish levels, to deliver an economy that works for the many, not the few."