Monica Lennon, one of the candidates vying to lead Scottish Labour, has announced she will donate her Holyrood exit payment to charity after making a comeback to the Scottish Parliament nearly three months after losing her seat in the May election.
Lennon, who represented Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse before losing out in May, is set to return to Holyrood and has made clear she has no intention of pocketing the resettlement grant that MSPs receive when they leave parliament.
Instead, the money will go to causes close to her heart, with women’s health organisations and alcohol abuse charities set to benefit from the donation.
The decision is likely to go down well with voters who have long been cynical about politicians helping themselves to public cash, especially when they end up back in their old jobs just months later. Lennon appears keen to get ahead of any awkward questions about the payment by making her intentions public from the outset.
Resettlement grants exist to help former MSPs get back on their feet after losing their positions, covering things like office closure costs and helping with the transition out of political life. Critics have previously argued the payments sit uncomfortably when politicians find their way back into parliament relatively quickly.
Lennon is currently in the running to become the next Scottish Labour leader, a contest that has taken on real significance as the party looks to rebuild its presence north of the border and mount a serious challenge to the SNP at Holyrood.
Her focus on women’s health has been a defining feature of her time in politics. She was the driving force behind landmark legislation on period poverty, successfully pushing through a bill that made Scotland the first country in the world to provide free period products by law. That campaign earned her widespread recognition and helped put Scotland on the map internationally when it comes to progressive health policy.
Alcohol abuse remains a serious issue across Scotland, with the country continuing to record some of the highest alcohol-related death rates in Western Europe. Charities working in that space often rely heavily on donations and fundraising, so any additional support tends to make a tangible difference to the people they work with.
By directing the exit payment toward these two causes, Lennon is sending a clear message about what she stands for as she makes her pitch to become Scottish Labour leader. It ties her public profile directly to the communities and issues she has championed throughout her political career.
The Scottish Labour leadership race comes at a critical time for the party. After years of struggling to find its footing in Scotland following the rise of the SNP, there is growing pressure on whoever takes the top job to deliver a credible vision that can win back voters who have drifted away.
Lennon returning to Holyrood gives her a platform to make that case directly, and her decision on the exit payment hands her a positive story to lead with as the contest heats up.
Fair play to her honestly, that’s a decent thing to do with the money. Wish more politicians had that kind of integrity rather than just pocketing everything they can get their hands on.