Unite frontrunner Steve Turner says indyref2 'matter for the Scottish people'

Steve Turner is the left-wing favourite to succeed Len McCluskey as general-secretary of Unite, which represents the interests of 1.4 million members across sectors including manufacturing, construction and transport.

In an interview published today Turner was asked for his views on Scotland's constitutional position.

"I always think this is a decision for the Scottish people. The people living in Scotland will make a decision on their own futures – that's not for me to comment on from London," he said.

He underlined that he would devolve the policy position to Pat Rafferty, Scottish regional general secretary.

"I'll devolve to Pat and our regional committee in Scotland and they'll inform and guide me on what they think they need to be doing.

He added: "I do believe in self-determination and always have. It is a question that will be discussed at length by our members. And as a national union we'll be guided by them."

In the interview with the Record, Turner said he was the only candidate that had the "experience, integrity and empathy" to lead Unite as workers face up to an economy battered by the coronavirus pandemic.

Turner, from south London, joined the old Transport and General Workers' Union at the age of 19 and currently holds the position of assistant general secretary, with responsibility for Unite's manufacturing sector.

He has already won the endorsement of McCluskey and Rafferty.

The union remains the single largest donor to the Labour party and whoever wins the leadership – Turner is up against two other candidates – will become a hugely influential figure in British politics.

"We've got to do what we've always said Labour has got to do – we've got to reconnect, we've got to organise in sectors of the economy where we've been absent and have not put our resources," he said.

"We'll pitch up in hospitality, and in care, and other areas where there has been a forgotten workforce for far too long."

Gary Smith, the recently elected general secretary of the GMB, told the Record he supported a review of his union's financial donations to Labour.

Turner, a life-long Labour member, said: "I would not personally support that, but it's not my decision. Our union is a democracy.

"The best defence against that, of course, is for Labour to get real and look after the interests of our members."

Outgoing Unite boss McCluskey revealed two years ago he would have voted for independence if he had lived in Scotland at the time of the 2014 referendum.

But he added the subsequent election of Jeremy Corbyn as UK Labour leader meant he had changed his stance.

Turner started his career as a bus conductor working for London Transport in the early 1980s.

Trade union bosses in Scotland backed indyref2 in a vote in April if a pro-independence majority of MSPs was elected in May.

The STUC congress backed a motion stating that Holyrood should have the power to hold a referendum on Scotland’s future and should not need the consent of Boris Johnson and the UK Government.

The motion also stated that the UK Government should not resist a second vote if a majority of pro-independence MSPs were elected to Holyrood – along with a clear preference among the Scottish public for a re-run of the 2014 vote. Voters did return a pro-independence parliament at the May 6 election.

STUC general secretary, Roz Foyer, said after the motion was passed: “Our vote today has re-affirmed the right of the Scottish people to self-determination and recognised that as the central democratic institution in Scotland, our parliament should have the power to determine whether and when to hold a second referendum.

“We have also made clear that any future referendum need not be confined to a binary choice if a meaningful third option is developed.”

The motion was welcomed by the SNP and the Greens but heaped pressure on Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar who has underlined his opposition to another independence referendum was “unequivocal”.