The Scottish Labour party is a bit like cigarette-smoking or the Church of Scotland: it used to be everywhere you looked, but now you can’t remember the last time you saw it. That leaves a vacancy at the top of Scottish Labour, and today North East Scotland MSP Michael Marra has followed his Glasgow colleague Monica Lennon in announcing his candidacy. Inside Scottish Labour, this is seen as a ‘Who are we?’ A more difficult question for Labour to confront is: ‘Does Scottish politics still need a Labour party?’ Whether they go with Michael Marra or Monica Lennon, Scottish Labour members should judge both candidates on their answer to the question: ‘What is the point of a Scottish Labour party?’