Jeremy Corbyn is 'leading the way' in rooting racial discrimination out of the Labour Party, Scottish leader Kezia Dugdale has said.

She welcomed the UK leader's announcement on Friday that he had set up an independent inquiry to look into anti-Semitism within the party's ranks.

The controversy over anti-Semitism within the Labour Party came to a head this week when Bradford West MP Naz Shah was suspended from the party, following a series of allegedly anti-Semitic social media posts prior to her election in 2015.

On Thursday, former London mayor Ken Livingstone was also suspended from Labour for remarks made in defence of Naz Shah, in which he suggested Adolf Hitler was a Zionist.

The independent review into allegations of anti-Semitism within Labour will be conducted by Shami Chakrabarti, formerly the director of human rights group Liberty.

Commenting while campaigning in Edinburgh on Saturday, Dugdale said the inquiry was "the right step", and that the timing of the controversy was "deeply regrettable" so close to an election.

The Scottish Labour leader said: "It's certainly the right step. The Labour Party exists to stand against all forms of discrimination, not least racial discrimination.

"We've got a proud record of doing that so the events of this past week are very much against the grain of that proud history of our party. So strong action needs to be taken and Jeremy Corbyn is leading the way.

"It's quite clearly at the front of the TV news bulletins and on the front pages of the newspapers and that's deeply regrettable when this should be the final week of a campaign focused on how we're going to stop the cuts, invest in education and use the new powers of the Scottish Parliament.

Dugdale added "Of course I don't want it to have an impact on this election."

As STV reported on Thursday, Kezia Dugdale was among a number of Labour voices calling for Ken Livingstone to be suspended before the call was eventually made.

The SNP said the controversy was "the last thing Kezia Dugdale and Scottish Labour need".

A spokesperson said: "This is the last thing Kezia Dugdale and Scottish Labour need a few days from the election.

"There is absolutely no place in Scottish or UK politics for anti-Semitism or prejudice of any kind, and Labour have done themselves no favours in their appalling handling of this situation."

The Scottish Liberal Democrats said anti-Semitism was more than just "regrettable".

Party leader Willie Rennie said: "We have made real progress in tackling racism in our society in recent years but we know that there is still a long way to go.

"Anti-Semitism and other forms of racism are not simply 'regrettable' - they have no place in Scotland today."

Rennie added: "We need to work together to send a strong message that racism in all its forms is wholly unacceptable."

The Greens insisted that anti-Semitism should not be confused with legitimate criticism of the Israeli state.

Spokesperson for Europe and external affairs Ross Greer said: "Any party which encounters anti-Semitism within its ranks shouldn't hesitate to adopt a zero-tolerance approach.

"Whilst it's clear that there have been instances of anti-Semitism within the Labour party there has also been a clear attempt to label all criticism of the state of Israel as anti-Semitic.

"This is deeply unhelpful and categorically incorrect."

Greer added: "The Scottish Greens stand resolutely with the people of Palestine who suffer daily from Israeli oppression and we stand with Jews anywhere in the world who suffer from anti-Semitism.

"We do this as a party committed to justice, equality and an end to discrimination and would expect any other party committed to these values to do the same."

The Scottish Conservatives have been approached for comment.