Kezia Dugdale named new Scottish Labour leader

Former deputy has pledged a 'fresh start' for the party decimated by the last election

Ms Dugdale, has promised a "fresh start" for the Scottish Labour party (Getty)

Kezia Dugdale has won the Scottish Labour leadership election, beating outsider Ken Macintosh with more than 70 per cent of the vote.

The contest follows the resignation of Jim Murphy after the Scottish Labour Party lost all but one of its 40 seats in the last general election.

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon was among the first to congratulate Ms Dugdale, first elected to Holyrood in 2011, who promised a "fresh start" for the Scottish Labour party.

Ms Dugdale, 33, vowed to work "night and day" to restore the party's political fortunes, telling supporters: "We are down, but we are not out."

The MSP for Edinburgh and Lothian, who previously held the deputy post, had led the leadership contest after being endorsed by the party’s senior figures, including Ian Murray, the party’s only remaining Scottish MP. She won the vote by a landslide 72.1 per cent.

The deputy leadership race has been won by MSP Alex Rowley, a former aide to Gordon Brown, who beat Glasgow city councillor Gordon Matheson and Richard Baker MSP in a tight contest.

Additional reporting by Press Association