NEXT Thursday Glasgow has a choice to make – a choice between those who would grind our citizens down with ideologically-driven hardship and austerity, and those who will stand up for this city and its people.

We have a choice between handing unchecked power to the most right-wing group of Tories in generations and SNP MPs committed to protecting this city from the misery foisted upon it by Boris’s Brexiteers.

For almost a decade, first in coalition with the LibDems, then under Cameron, May and now Johnson, the Tories have been determined to reverse the progress Scotland has been making.

Thousands of Glasgow’s families struggle on the brink, crushed by Westminster’s welfare reform policies. Instead of getting a leg up, those coping with poor health, worklessness or in-work poverty are punished by the failed Universal Credit.

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Our city is in the midst of a drug crisis. Glasgow’s drug-related deaths are nearly three times the UK average. We need an open and honest discussion about how to fix this. The UK Government bars the way to the most effective intervention to cut the number of deaths.

No matter how compelling a case we put forward for safe consumption facilities, Tory home secretaries shut the door in our faces. The lives of thousands of people in Glasgow are secondary to their desire to win votes in the Home Counties.

Asylum seekers who have reached the end of the process are being evicted from their homes and are at risk of being left destitute on our streets. Whatever your views on the asylum system, it is inhumane that successive UK governments have made it illegal for councils like Glasgow to offer assistance to those who may end up in destitution.

Something really notable has happened since Boris Johnson took over as Prime Minister. It is always incumbent upon me as council leader to write to UK ministers, bringing important matters to their attention and asking for a positive intervention.

Until recently, I always received a response, even if it was rarely a positive one. Now? They don’t even give Glasgow the courtesy of acknowledging our concerns. The Tory Government cares not a jot about the well-being of our city and its people.

Labour have shown themselves to be next to useless in protecting Scotland from the ravages of austerity. They have even failed to take a position on Brexit, the most pressing issue of our times. Make no mistake, Brexit will do considerable damage to this Remain-voting city and the thousands of jobs that depend on open access to EU markets.

Every year the Scottish Government spends around half a billion pounds mitigating the worst excesses of Tory austerity. It has protected our health service, police numbers and local government services, and shown time and again how much more progressive our Parliament is. Likewise, here in Glasgow, we have invested millions in austerity mitigation measures, from our Holiday Hunger programmes through to hubs to assist those claiming Universal Credit in securing all the benefits they’re entitled to. The Tories talk about the Union as a family of nations, but, for them, it is not a union of equals. The contempt shown to Scotland throughout the Brexit process illustrates that very clearly.

Next Thursday, vote for a party that will ensure Glasgow’s voice is heard and its needs are represented at Westminster. Vote SNP.

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SO, today marks the one of the significant days in the history of the Evening Times. After almost 150 years it becomes the Glasgow Times, a refreshed identity for an old and trusted brand in a world of new challenges and opportunities. I have no doubt it will retain and, indeed, build upon its place at the heart of public life in our great city.

The campaign with which it kicks off this new era is a testament to its conscience and steadfast commitment to Glasgow. Not only does the foodbank campaign set out to help those who will struggle this Christmas but it mobilises the wider community to get involved. We all have a role to play in making lives better and The Glasgow Times has laid down a real marker.

Glasgow is Scotland’s one true metropolitan region. It’s a diverse, vibrant and changing city, a real hive of news and interest. Those familiar with news journalism cannot fail to be impressed with the team’s dedication to their title and its readership. And, of course, to “The People of Glasgow”. I wish you all the very best going forward.