Pauline McNeill Labour Party
Regional list candidate · Glasgow region · list position 2
One of the original 1999 intake, she served as MSP for Glasgow Kelvin from 1999 to 2011 and as a Glasgow regional MSP from 2016 to 2026. A former Convener of the Justice Committee, she was Scottish Labour's spokesperson on justice from 2021 until dissolution and a long-standing voice on housing and rent controls.
Policy Positions
Scotland's Future
Oppose independence. Focus on delivery within the UK and Scotland's strengths in the UK growth sectors. Frame the election as a choice between delivery and SNP-led constitutional distraction.
NHS & Health
End the 8am GP rush, bring back the family doctor, cut waiting times with funding following the patient, introduce an NHS app and AI scanners, and deliver £15/hr for social care workers.
Housing
Long-standing public champion of statutory rent controls; lodged the Fair Rents (Scotland) Bill as a Member's Bill in 2019 and has consistently argued for stronger tenant protections, diverging from Scottish Labour's 2026 line of no new rent controls. Otherwise aligned with the party's housing programme of 125,000 new homes by 2031, 20,000 mid-market rent homes, and a new Housing Bank.
Climate & Transport
Achieve net zero by 2045 ambitions. Double home retrofits, back GB Energy and the Scottish National Investment Bank, end the block on clean nuclear energy, and deliver a fair energy transition for oil and gas workers.
Tax & Public Spending
Commit to no income tax rate rises for five years, with the ambition to lower taxes as the economy grows.
Economy & Jobs
Sustained economic growth as the route to improving living standards. Establish a Scottish Board of Trade, partner with GB Energy and the UK National Wealth Fund, and cut a third of quangos to end government waste.
Education & Childcare
Breakfast clubs in every primary school, 2,000 Education Recovery teachers and 1,500 more classroom assistants, ban mobile phones in classrooms, and top up tax-free childcare to £3,000 per child.
Social Issues
Recommit the NHS to single-sex wards on the basis of biological sex. Deliver a four-nation conversion practices ban to protect LGBT+ people. Tackle long waits for gynaecological procedures as part of a women's health plan.
Track Record
› Elected to the first Scottish Parliament in 1999 for Glasgow Kelvin
› Returned in 2016 as MSP for Glasgow region; re-elected 2021
› Former Convener of the Justice Committee
› Scottish Labour spokesperson on justice, 2021-2026
› Member of the Criminal Justice Committee