THERE’S so much noise at the moment – it’s hard to cut through it to what really matters when it comes to casting your vote next Thursday. Everybody is shouting about Brexit, the NHS, and independence – but no matter how fervently I want an independent Scotland, within the EU, with a well-funded NHS, we have to hold onto the critical issue that nobody is talking about.

This is the first general election since the world’s scientists made crystal clear that we have just 10 years to fundamentally change our systems enough to slow down climate change, or it will be too late.

The constitutional status of Scotland will be a moot point if we have no planet. And this is about inequality – just as poor air quality most affects people with poorer health, people who have the least power and fewest resources are the worst hit by climate breakdown.

The next UK Parliament covers half the time we have left for action. Climate emergency should be the overwhelming theme of this election, and yet it’s barely had three minutes of airtime. Young people know this, and yet some of them can’t vote on what will be the defining issue of their generation. You can stand up for them by voting Green on Thursday.

If you’re in Glasgow North, you can vote for Cass McGregor. Cass is a chronic pain physio in the NHS who became an activist because she was fed up seeing the effects of austerity on her clients. Cass is always calm in a crisis, a voice of reason, and sends me gold star stickers when I’m flagging.

If you’re in Glasgow Central, you can vote for Elaine Gallagher, who is a writer with a background in engineering. Elaine is passionate about human rights and decent public services, and keeps putting herself above the parapet to fight inequality, which is both brave and incredibly inspiring.

And if you’re in Glasgow South you can vote for Dan Hutchison, who is currently Student Vice President of Education at UWS. Dan is who I’d pick to run my life if I could afford some sort of chief of staff. He is permanently in motion, passionate, whipsmart and secretly a whizz at a roller disco.

I know it’s reasonable to feel disillusioned with politics right now, but I couldn’t commend these candidates highly enough. They are honest, engaged, brilliant people who will work hard for you.

Green candidates are standing on a manifesto to transform Scotland, with a Scottish Green New Deal to create 200,000 new jobs in a just transition to a low-carbon economy. For warm homes with lower energy usage and an end to fuel poverty. To put public transport back in public hands, so it works for people not profit – and make it free to use.

That’s the kind of radical change we need, for the planet and for all of us. Demand climate action – vote Green on Thursday.