Wendy Alexander is setting out her own vision for the way forward for Labour in Scotland, as the party prepares to gather for its annual conference later this week.

But in appealing to her own membership, she has felt it necessary to make a sideswipe at Labour's partners in the Scottish Constitutional Commission, the Liberal Democrats, accusing them of "woolly thinking" for not accepting that any change in the devolution settlement should involve some powers being handed back to Westminster.

She also appears to have abandoned any possibility of the commission coming up with a final set of proposals which all three pro-Union parties can sign up to, saying: "It will be for the parties to decide what parts of the commission's recommendations they wish to accept and put before the Scottish people."

Ms Alexander's 24-page pamphlet, "Change is what we do," calls for greater patient choice in healthcare, better basics in education and a more personalised approach there too, and continuing a tough stance on antisocial behaviour.

As such, it differs little from her predecessors, nor does it mark any clear policy divide with the party at Westminster, which will put her at odds with her party's left at Aviemore who will be demanding Labour recapture traditional policy ground now occupied by the nationalists.

Ms Alexander's vision statement speaks of "the three most gifted politicians of the centre-left - Bill Clinton, Tony Blair and Gordon Brown" who proved that "centre-left parties can run the economy not just well, but better than right-wing parties, while healing rifts right-wing politics worsen."

She admits the SNP slogan last year, "It's time for change," captured the public mood, which is why she wants to get her message across that the real party of change is Labour.

But she insists that to look at reviewing devolution only in terms of more powers for Holyrood would be "an exercise driven by Nationalist ideology" when it should be evidence-based.

"It is a pity that the Liberal Democrats seem to have set their face against the principle of looking at movement in both directions," she writes. "Clearly in a fast changing world it is no more than woolly thinking to assume that within devolved or federal arrangements movement will only be in one direction."

A LibDem spokesman last night said: "Nobody can present a coherent argument naming specific powers that they would like to see returned to Westminster.

"The Scottish people want to see an enhanced parliament with greater powers, particularly fiscal powers, and those are the proposals which the LibDems will be presenting to the commission."

For the SNP, Ochil MSP Keith Brown said: "Her commission and her credibility are now in tatters. The commission started off seeking more powers for Scotland but has now been downgraded by Brown to a working party which would take powers back to London."

He also said she had gaffed by praising John Wheatley's expansion of council house building, given her own party's behaviour in parliament last week. "This is another example of why there are serious questions and divisions about Wendy Alexander's leadership. She attacks the Tories for opposing council house building John Wheatley initiated.

"Yet only last Thursday Wendy and her Labour MSPs conspired with the Tories to try and prevent authorities from building new houses."