Well-known local man, Bob Doris MSP, has been selected as candidate for the Scottish National Party in next May's Scottish Parliamentary elections. His candidacy for the newly created Maryhill and Springburn constituency was endorsed unanimously by local party members at a meeting in Ruchill Community Centre last Wednesday (21st July).

Mr Doris addressed the meeting and promised to run a positive campaign which would highlight the achievements made by the Scottish Government, but also to expose the failure of the Labour Party in Scotland who have once again proven unable to stop a London-based Tory party ruling over Scotland.

Speaking at the meeting, Mr Doris said: "It is a privilege to be selected to fight the new Maryhill and Springburn seat at the Scottish Parliamentary elections next year. With the people of Scotland now at the mercy of a deeply regressive Tory and Lib Dem British Government, it is more important than ever that our area has a good-quality local representative. I am honoured that locals believe I can provide that.

"The SNP Government has much to be proud of. We have funded record levels of new-build social housing in Glasgow, we are abolishing prescription charges, and we have abolished student tuition fees. There are also record levels of police officers on our streets and crime rates are falling. I will be positive about the SNP's achievements, but we must not pretend that everything is rosy in the face of unprecedented UK cuts.

"Labour axed hundreds of millions of pounds from the Scottish budget and now the Tories are continuing these savage cuts. Scotland needs its freedom from a bankrupt UK so those struggling to survive can get a route out of poverty and into work. Only the SNP will stand up to Tory cuts and offer hope for the future.

"At the recent UK elections, many people in Maryhill and Springburn voted Labour out of fear of a Tory Government. However, after the UK election delivered no overall winner, the SNP offered to work with the Labour Party to block the Tories taking power. Labour refused. Labour chose Tory rule over working with the SNP. That must be exposed.

"Together with the local community, the SNP can win Maryhill and Springburn. I will give it my all."

Mr Doris's parliamentary colleague, Anne McLaughlin MSP, who attended the endorsement meeting, added:

"Having worked closely with Bob, I know he has a proven track record in standing up for local communities. Amongst a number of achievements, he has helped win weekly cash payments for Glasgow's kinship carers, gained over £5m of Town Centre Regeneration Fund cash for our city, and has worked with local communities in resisting Labour's brutal school and community centre closure programmes. Bob is a different class of politician. He is the kind of MSP that gets in there, rolls his sleeve up and gets on with the job, rather than just talking about it."