Glasgow North East - and we are off

Despite the fact that the people of Glasgow North East have now been 115 days without Westminster representation and that as of yesterday Labour still had not moved the writ in Parliament for the by-election to take place, the Liberal Democrats launched their campaign yesterday with Leader Tavish Scott, Eileen Baxendale and Robert Brown MSP in Springburn.

As is always the case with these things we had journalists getting a wee bit irate because of deadlines, and it showed in their questions (a chill pill may have been in order there), Tavish was delayed because a van broke down on the M8 and it was overcast.

But there were some good photos with a local family and with Eileen's family there as well it was a great launch, but be under no illusion this wasn't the Liberal Democrats starting there in Glasgow North East yesterday, oh no, we have been there for weeks now, in fact months.

Eileen and the team have been out knocking on thousands of doors and local residents have been genuinely pleased to see the face of someone who cares, someone who has spent nearly twenty years on and off working in the heart of their community and understanding them, not patronising them like some of the career politicians.

If you have never been to Glasgow, and to be honest prior to me taking this new role on in Scotland my experience of Glasgow used to be running from Central Station to Queen Street Station to then get a train up to see my Mum in Ardgay.

Last year I spent six weeks there with our fantastic candidate Ian Robertson in the Glasgow East by-election and then various times with Katy Gordon our candidate fighting to be the next MP for Glasgow North and now recent weeks in Glasgow North East.

The area may have not had the funding it so richly deserves, but the people and the communities are so united and their determination is amazing. I have met some great people in Glasgow and yes, that is where I was introduced to Irn Bru, like the people a great product of Glasgow.

With Labour closing schools across Glasgow, and the SNP yet to build any schools since coming into power the children of Glasgow will surely suffer, if not now certainly in the future and we want the school building to commence again as it was happening when the Liberal Democrats were in Government, the money is there for the SNP to do it and to continue our record of building new schools - I know they have just announced a new wave of school building but why did they stop the programme? Why has nothing been built in the last two years?

The SNP are so all over the place in Glasgow North East, they are on their third candidate already, so before nominations close it may very well all change again, who knows?

This election should not end up with another career politician being elected in Glasgow North East because that isn't what the people want or need, they need someone who will stand up for them after decades of Labour neglect and now SNP u-turns and inaction on the things that really matter in their communities across the area. Change is certainly needed, a vote for the Liberal Democrats will certainly bring about that change.