Members of Scottish Labour have resisted a reported challenge to Richard Leonard's leadership by MSPs critical of the left winger.

After years of almost annual leadership battles, many members have taken to social media this evening to insist another factional leadership battle would do unrepairable harm to the party.

Several elected politicians as well as grassroots members seemed to pre-empt a rumoured attempt to trigger a leadership contest after a tough set of results at the Euro elections.

North Ayrshire council leader Joe Cullinane called for a "stark conversation" about how the party rebuilds in Scotland rather than a "summer of infighting"

Activist Connor Boyes said online that the Scottish party at Holyrood saw the solution to any problem being a new leader.

"View of a lot of the grassroots is that this is part of an attritional campaign against having someone Corbyn-sympathetic in the leadership role, but can't help but think this is down to the fact it's so ingrained in the SPLP that a new leader is all they need to fix things, " he said.

Scott Rogers, who has been a key figure in coordinating many of the party's campaigns in West Lothian, said he was concerned about the effect of a further leadership battle on Scottish Labour's activist base.

Some also drew comparisions with the 2016 bid to oust Corbyn after the EU referendum, saying Labour wasted months on party infighting rather than dealing with the result.

Speaking to The Red Robin, Scottish Labour councillor Robert Foster said: "Spending the summer arguing about a new leadership election is the last thing Scottish Labour needs. We should be spending that time having the difficult conversation on where we go from Sunday’s result. A change in Leader is not an answer to the complex question of the EU and how we can bring a polarised country together. This is a time for cool heads to prevail if we are to continue as the voice of working class people across Scotland."

Despite rumours that several of his own MSPs are looking to oust him, Richard Leonard is resolute that he won't resign and instead called for unity as he attempted to reach out to voters in Scotland. 

Image: Scottish Labour