About Paul O'Kane

My story

I’ve fought for change all my life. Whether helping people back to work in my first job at the Volunteer Centre in East Dunbartonshire; Or raising money to support people with life limiting conditions with my friends in Inverclyde, change is at the heart of who I am.

As Leader of East Renfrewshire Labour and our Candidate in Renfrewshire South, I have led change in our communities particularly through the recent Covid-19 pandemic. Together we can transform our Party and our communities.

Share your ideas for change.

Share your ideas

How do we build back better?

As Leader of East Renfrewshire Labour and our Candidate in Renfrewshire South, I've led change in our communities particularly through the recent Covid-19 pandemic. Together we can go further, please share your ideas for change.

Paul O’Kane transparent headshots

My mum and dad gave me my values.

My dad’s parents came to this country from Ireland with little money; facing the hardship of discrimination and low paid menial work. They lived in a room and kitchen in Anderston and began their family of six children before being moved to Drumchapel and latterly the Vale of Leven.

My grandparents on both sides wanted the best for their children – for them to succeed and have more chances in life.

I never met my dad’s dad – he died as a young man by today’s standards before I was born – his health weakened by working outdoors in the elements, labouring in the only jobs available with little health and safety and little rights. My mum’s Dad also died relatively young, when I was five, from a heart attack; the sad story of so many men in the West of Scotland.

I have such fond memories of my grandparents – they looked after my brother and I and spoiled us rotten. I remember vividly daily lunch breaks from school at my Gran and Grandpa’s in Neilston or Sunday trips to Ladyton in the Vale of Leven to see our formidable but very loving Irish Granny.

They passed this on to their children and in turn my parents passed this to me:

The idea that you’re as good as anyone but better than no one; the belief that kindness and treating others as you wish to be treated is central to making the world a better place; the value of standing up for what is right; of solidarity with others; and never passing by on the other side when someone needs help.

They also instilled a sense of working hard and doing your best. My mum was the first in her family to go to University and train to be a teacher, despite a system pitted against her where she had to fight for every opportunity she got.

All through the Thatcher years my parents worked – in classrooms with scarce resources and insecure jobs in finance where how sharp your elbows were was more important than how sharp your mind was.

The only limits my parents wanted for my brother and I was our ambition. They wanted us to do well at school and to be secure afterwards. More than that and above all – they wanted us to be happy. They say it takes a village to raise a child and Neilston did that for me. A close-knit community always ready to look out for one another.

All through my life, folk in Neilston have said to me “are you Ann Marie and Frank’s boy?” which has either struck the fear of getting into trouble or been a source of great pride!

They passed this on to their children and in turn my parents passed this to me:

The idea that you’re as good as anyone but better than no one; the belief that kindness and treating others as you wish to be treated is central to making the world a better place; the value of standing up for what is right; of solidarity with others; and never passing by on the other side when someone needs help.

They also instilled a sense of working hard and doing your best. My mum was the first in her family to go to University and train to be a teacher, despite a system pitted against her where she had to fight for every opportunity she got.

All through the Thatcher years my parents worked – in classrooms with scarce resources and insecure jobs in finance where how sharp your elbows were was more important than how sharp your mind was.

The only limits my parents wanted for my brother and I was our ambition. They wanted us to do well at school and to be secure afterwards. More than that and above all – they wanted us to be happy. They say it takes a village to raise a child and Neilston did that for me. A close-knit community always ready to look out for one another.

All through my life, folk in Neilston have said to me “are you Ann Marie and Frank’s boy?” which has either struck the fear of getting into trouble or been a source of great pride!

My faith was a big part of my life growing up and I enjoyed going to Church; singing in the choir and getting involved in youth clubs. Weekends and holidays were spent playing around Neilston, usually in the countryside with my brother and our friends – being chased by a herd of cows was commonplace!

I was so fortunate to go to a fantastic Secondary school – with lots of different people from all kinds of backgrounds many of whom are still my friends today. St Luke’s High School instilled in me the importance of giving back to others; of doing your bit in society as a good citizen. I think fondly of being encouraged and supported to volunteer with the elderly; the sick; and the marginalised – to understand others and their experiences.

To know that change is always possible and never to simply just accept the way things are. It was at High School that I first properly knew I was gay. I remember the abject fear in the early years of High School of what my life would be like – was this wrong? Would I be alone forever? Would I ever be accepted? I was often subject to bullying behaviour from others.

I was lucky though – I had amazing friends who were so supportive; I had amazing teachers who wouldn’t tolerate homophobic attitudes even in the early 2000s. I remember a wonderful English teacher who overheard some insult or another; he tore a strip off the offender and took me into his classroom afterwards – he told me that my life was going somewhere; that I could be whatever I wanted to be; and that the small minded attitude of the bullies wasn’t worth a second thought. It was my “it gets better” moment and it made all the difference – I am grateful for it to this day.

In Sixth Year, I was elected Head Boy by my peers and teachers – I loved every minute of that year – that first steps towards adulthood. After school, I studied English Literature and Politics at the University of Glasgow from 2006-2010.

I worked in several part time jobs at University, the most rewarding being as an Activities Organiser in a Care Home with people who were living with dementia. I can still call a mean game of Bingo! This job showed me the amazing capacity of people to care in the most difficult of circumstances.

At University, I continued to volunteer – supporting projects at home and abroad. In 2007 I travelled to Kenya to spend a summer helping in a school – this trip had a huge impact on my life.

When I graduated, I knew I wanted to work with people; to support communities; to create that change I had seen throughout my childhood and student years.

I applied for my first job with the Volunteer Centre in East Dunbartonshire – a great organisation in Kirkintilloch that supported people to volunteer in the local community and helped organisations recruit the volunteers they needed. Often I supported people who were unemployed; had just left prison; or had a learning disability to access opportunities that all too often felt out of reach.

The same things that led me to work in the volunteer centre were the things that drew me to the Labour Party. I joined the Labour Party because it was the party of hard work and responsibility; of making sure that everyone got the best chance in life and, most importantly, the party of change. We are never satisfied with the way things are, and neither should we be.

In Sixth Year, I was elected Head Boy by my peers and teachers – I loved every minute of that year – that first steps towards adulthood. After school, I studied English Literature and Politics at the University of Glasgow from 2006-2010. I worked in several part time jobs at University, the most rewarding being as an Activities Organiser in a Care Home with people who were living with dementia. I can still call a mean game of Bingo! This job showed me the amazing capacity of people to care in the most difficult of circumstances. At University, I continued to volunteer – supporting projects at home and abroad. In 2007 I travelled to Kenya to spend a summer helping in a school – this trip had a huge impact on my life.

When I graduated, I knew I wanted to work with people; to support communities; to create that change I had seen throughout my childhood and student years.

I applied for my first job with the Volunteer Centre in East Dunbartonshire – a great organisation in Kirkintilloch that supported people to volunteer in the local community and helped organisations recruit the volunteers they needed. Often I supported people who were unemployed; had just left prison; or had a learning disability to access opportunities that all too often felt out of reach.

The same things that led me to work in the volunteer centre were the things that drew me to the Labour Party. I joined the Labour Party because it was the party of hard work and responsibility; of making sure that everyone got the best chance in life and, most importantly, the party of change. We are never satisfied with the way things are, and neither should we be.

In 2012 I had the opportunity to stand for Labour as a local Councillor in the community in which I was brought up. It was a tough battle standing against an incumbent Tory who had held the Ward for decades. We ran a campaign that focussed on the change I could bring to the community; the change that Labour could make for local people. The odds were stacked against me – but change won through.

I have been honoured to be the Councillor since then, and proud to have been re- elected in 2017. In my first term in the Council I worked for Gemma Doyle who was then the MP for West Dunbartonshire, sharing an office with Jackie Baillie MSP; learning so much from her amazing campaigning and work for her constituents. I supported people with their issues particularly access to benefits and challenging unfair decision making by the DWP. I loved doing this in a community so close to my heart - where my dad grew up and my extended family still live today.

After this I moved further down the river to work for a rewarding year in Dalmuir park Housing Association before taking up my current post with a national learning disability charity where I help run campaigns seeking to build an equal society for every person who has a learning disability – change so needed.

In the Council I was honoured to be elected by my colleagues to serve as Leader of the Labour Group; and subsequently to be appointed Deputy Leader of the Council and Convener for Education & Equalities.

Education has the power to change lives; I know that from my own experience. With investment; leadership; and a relentless focus on equity we have ensured that schools like the one I went to, with areas of high deprivation, are some of the highest achieving in the country.

In 2017, my partner Alan and I bought our first home together in Neilston – the community that has given me so much – we are putting down roots and looking forward to getting married.

Together we enjoy socialising with our friends and travelling – we have been known to throw the odd party, Eurovision being my favourite!

We also volunteer in our local community – helping to organise the Christmas lights switch on and the Great Get Together.

In 2016 I was Scottish Labour’s Candidate in Renfrewshire South for the Scottish Parliamentary election. Like nearly all our constituency candidates that year, I lost. Despite hard work from our members and activists, Scottish Labour went backwards.

That makes me angry, because our communities are crying out for change. The system hasn’t worked for them and both the Tories and the SNP have nothing to offer apart from the false hope of Brexit or independence.

In 2017, my partner Alan and I bought our first home together in Neilston – the community that has given me so much – we are putting down roots and looking forward to getting married.

Together we enjoy socialising with our friends and travelling – we have been known to throw the odd party, Eurovision being my favourite!

We also volunteer in our local community – helping to organise the Christmas lights switch on and the Great Get Together.

In 2016 I was Scottish Labour’s Candidate in Renfrewshire South for the Scottish Parliamentary election. Like nearly all our constituency candidates that year, I lost. Despite hard work from our members and activists, Scottish Labour went backwards.

That makes me angry, because our communities are crying out for change. The system hasn’t worked for them and both the Tories and the SNP have nothing to offer apart from the false hope of Brexit or independence.

Scottish Labour’s decline isn’t the fault of the voters. It’s our fault. Because we haven’t been cutting through, because we have failed to listen to what people have been telling us and because we have stagnated. We need to be better.

To do that, we need change. We need new ideas and new enthusiasm. We need new voices. We need to be clear on where we stand. And we can’t achieve that with more of the same.

 

I joined the Labour Party to change our country. But to do that we need to change.

 

It's time to listen; to act; to make change happen.

 

I am ready - stand with me.

Vote Paul O’Kane and Scottish
Labour on Thursday 6th May

I am standing because we need an MSP who makes Renfrewshire South the priority and will fight for what really matters.

Paul O’Kane transparent headshots

Vote Paul O’Kane and Scottish
Labour on Thursday 6th May

I am standing because we need an MSP who makes Renfrewshire South the priority and will fight for what really matters.

Paul O’Kane transparent headshots