Pam Duncan-Glancy resigned from the Scottish Labour front bench and confirmed she would not seek re-election after details of her close friendship with Sean Moton, a former Labour councillor in Moray, emerged.
But the Glasgow MSP faces calls to resign from Holyrood with immediate effect after new revelations emerged about Morton, who was once considered a rising star in the party before he confessed to possessing indecent images of children in 2017.
He pled guilty and was given a community payback order which included 140 hours of unpaid work.
New information was revealed by the Daily Record on Thursday, showing Ms Duncan-Glancy maintained the friendship following a second conviction.
Morton was jailed last year for possessing more indecent images of children and was handed a 16-month sentence in prison after pleading guilty.
Glasgow Sheriff Court issued him with another 16 month sentence over a breach of sexual offences order. He was jailed in January last year but the sentences were backdated to May 2024.
He was released from prison in the autumn and went for dinner and drinks with Ms Duncan-Glancy towards the end of last year.
But Mr Sarwar, the Scottish Labour has refused to say whether he will remove the party whip from Ms Duncan-Glancy in light of the new revelations.
Rona Mackay told our sister title The Herald: “Labour’s lack of accountability here is staggering.
“Anas Sarwar now needs to be honest with people – should Pam Duncan-Glancy resign as MSP immediately, or will he remove the party whip from her?
“After the initial news, this week’s leaflet scandal, and now this latest development, it is quickly becoming clear just how untrustworthy Anas Sarwar’s Labour party really is.”
Ms Mackay previously said “serious questions” needed to be answered about the Scottish Labour leader’s “handling of this disturbing saga”.
“For Ms Duncan-Glancy’s friendship to continue with Mr Morton until she was approached is staggering.
“But the news about Morton’s further conviction in 2025 make Scottish Labour’s decision to approve her candidacy, given her friendship with Mr Morton, utterly unbelievable.”
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She added: “If Pam Duncan-Glancy is not fit to sit on Labour’s front bench or be a candidate, then this latest information shows she is not fit to carry on as an MSP until the election in May.
“Anas Sarwar must now come clean with the public about his knowledge of Pam Duncan-Glancy’s relationship with Sean Morton, and confirm whether he has swept any knowledge of these most recent convictions under the carpet.”
After news of the additional revelations emerged, our sister title The Herald doorstepped the Scottish Labour leader as he left the Holyrood chamber after First Minister’s Questions (FMQs).
Asked whether he would now suspend Ms Duncan-Glancy, he said he would have a look of the details of the story.
He said: “Pam has already accepted her error of judgement in maintaining a friendship with this individual and as you know, she is not a candidate come the election in May.”
He added: “I don’t know the details of the story that has been published while we were in the chamber.”
But he added that he expected the “highest standards” from Labour politicians, stating: “There were certain reassurances that I wanted and demanded and she is no longer a candidate.”
But a day later our sister title The Herald repeatedly asked Scottish Labour whether it would remove the party whip from Ms Duncan-Glancy.
A spokesperson later confirmed there would be no further comment.
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In a statement last month, Ms Duncan Glancy said: “I am announcing today that I am withdrawing as a candidate for the Scottish Parliamentary election next year,” she said.
“While this has obviously been a very difficult decision – and it is the greatest honour of my life to represent Glasgow – I do not wish for a personal friendship to become a distraction.
“I am grateful to have had the opportunity to serve, and I remain committed to returning a Scottish Labour government next year.
“I promised in my first speech in parliament to give a voice to the voiceless. I will go on doing that.
“I will continue to fight for my constituents for the next five months, as I have for the last five years. And I will keep fighting for the causes I believe in.”
Her decision came after Mr Sarwar made clear the friendship must not continue.
Mr Sarwar said: “As soon as I became aware of that, I was deeply concerned as you’d imagine. I think it’s important to stress that no one is suggesting there was any illegality from Pam herself, but it wasn’t appropriate to keep that friendship going.
“It was right that she stepped down from her position and apologised for keeping that friendship going, and our expectation is and our belief is, that that friendship will now come to an end.”
