SCOTLAND’S youngest council party leader is hoping to expand his organisation by encouraging more people to join.

Glasgow City Council’s Conservative councillor Thomas Kerr, who has been the group’s deputy since 2017, took over from councillor David Meikle last Wednesday.

Mr Kerr, who has represented the Shettleston Ward since his election two years ago, said he was overwhelmed but excited to lead the group with Councillor Ade Aibinu as his deputy.

The 22-year-old praised his predecessor for his hard work and said he wanted to continue Mr Meikle’s legacy by encouraging more people to join the party including women and ethnic minorities.

Mr Kerr said: “It is overwhelming to have the title of Scotland’s youngest leader. I am the first conservative in over 100 years to be elected in Shettleston and to become group leader is an honour.

“It has been incredible to have been a councillor for the last two years under David Meikle’s leadership.

“My mission is that by 2022 we will have more than eight councillors. We are currently an all-male group. We need female representation.”

The group will work with Glasgow Conservative MSP Annie Wells who is running Scotland’s Women2Win campaign which aims to ensure the Scottish Conservatives represent women at all levels of politics.

Mr Kerr continued: “We will work hard to encourage women to join the party while working with MSP Annie Wells on the Women2Win campaign to make sure we have more female representation within the Glasgow group.

“We will also encourage more young people into politics and work with people from all back grounds.

“Councillor Ade Aibinu, who is my deputy, is the first black councillor with an African background, to be elected in Glasgow.”

Mr Kerr, whose parents were both heroin addicts, wants to demonstrate to others in the same situation that if you work hard you can achieve your goals.

He said: “I grew up in a deprived area. Both my parents had drug problems. Many kids were in a similar position to me and felt they had no hope.

“For them it just became the way of life but I wanted something different. There are thousands of kids who are in the same position I was in who could do the same.

“I chose to join the Conservative party as I felt Labour and the SNP put people like me into boxes. The Conservatives seemed to say that if you worked hard it paid off.

“They taught me that is doesn’t matter where you come from you do anything you want to.”