A YOUNG Glaswegian SNP activist told me of his recent canvassing experiences. Responses he encountered made him think that the SNP could win an overall majority in the city in May, and that the vote was increasingly splitting between the SNP and the Tories.

I replied that although there may be a chance of that, a significant factor will be the poor state of the opposition parties, and in particular Labour, which ultimately does no-one any favours.

More critically, such dynamics disguise Glasgow’s longer-term challenges, the limited response of the SNP after running a minority council for five years, and the even bigger lack of support from the Scottish Government for Glasgow and local government. All of this points to an emerging “Glasgow effect” for the SNP and independence that has to be addressed for the good of Scotland.

Glasgow is a proud city with a long history of ambition, achievements and imagination. Its constant re-invention has sustained it through good and bad times – from post-war de-industrialisation and Thatcherism.

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Alongside this, the city has been constantly battered by external forces and had huge change imposed on it by capitalist economics, government and experts that has come at a cumulative cost.

Glasgow has had its ups and downs, but in recent times, a sense of drift and decline has been evident politically – and in how it sees itself in Scotland. This was true under Labour-run councils and the SNP minority council since 2017.

There are a host of factors at play – Glasgow’s constrained council boundaries, the 1996 abolition of Strathclyde Region taking a level of redistribution from the suburbs to the city out of the equation, the arrival of the Scottish Parliament and its relentless centralisation of public life, a decade of local government cuts, and pressures such as the multi-million-pound bill for pay equality.

Add to this the numerous challenges the city faces – high levels of poverty, inequality and health; its fiscal base; and the need to act on climate change.

Being Glasgow, there are several ambitious grand designs from a welter of multi-agency partnerships which aim to address some of the big issues, from climate change to the city centre, transport and the River Clyde.

The city centre has been hit by the decline of the high street and the rise of online shopping which were already big factors pre-Covid-19. The latter has hit Glasgow hard for somewhere that marketed itself as the biggest shopping mecca outside London.

Many of Glasgow’s neighbourhoods – Finnieston, Dennistoun, Govanhill, Shawlands – have become happening destinations with independent shops, social enterprises and street culture. But this rich ecology is fragile, defined by precariat employment and vulnerable to the UK-wide decline in living standards.

The Victorian physical fabric of the city is showing its age, with its iconic tenements needing urgent renovation. Niall Murphy of Glasgow Heritage City Trust observes that: “We urgently need to address this by retrofitting our housing stock. Although it will be intrusive, disruptive and expensive, it could lead to job creation and ultimately, a fairer society, if it reduces fuel poverty and helps mitigate the chaos of climate change.”

Transport and connectivity are a critical in a city with the lowest UK car ownership, while large parts of Glasgow are cut through by motorways. A Glasgow Connectivity Commission has made far-reaching plans but requires agency, will and resources. “Transport is the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in Scotland and in Glasgow – the majority is caused by private cars,” states Ellie Harrison, author of the book The Glasgow Effect: “Yet in Glasgow more than half of households don’t have access to a car.”

THE mindset of council municipalism still exists in places. There have also been missteps by the new SNP council and its leader Susan Aitken – part inexperience and part the enormity of the task. But a whole host of fundamentals have made this more acute.

The new council has been reluctant to publicly stand up and champion Glasgow in relation to the Scottish Government, giving the impression that the council is Holyrood’s advocate in Glasgow. And critically, after waiting

so long to win Glasgow, the lack of funding from the Scottish Government seems to border on not understanding the needs and importance of the city.

Some of the best of Glasgow can be seen in the community activism, social enterprises and campaigns to defend local services such as libraries and community centres from closures. There is a tension between this view of the city and official agencies.

“I think greater value needs to be placed on the time and expertise of community organisations to enable genuine partnership working with the council” says community activist and artist Alex Wilde.

We should “not to be made to feel grateful for the crumbs that are made available, not constantly asked to support consultations while being underfunded, not be led into taking over assets then left to fend for ourselves, and not patronised when we disagree”.

Jude Barber, director of the firm Collective Architecture, thinks that: “There must be open forums for frank and honest conversations – and awareness raising around very real challenges and barriers to enacting change around matters such as unequal distribution of land ownership/wealth, poverty, and stewardship.”

Chik Collins, an authority on Glasgow and rector of the University of the Faroes, notes: “We need a proper reckoning with the legacy of the systematic mistreatment of Glasgow by Edinburgh-based policy makers over many decades. Glasgow was forced into an accelerated industrial and population decline in the interests of what was perceived to be a ‘greater good’ of creating a new economy and society outside of Glasgow.”

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Collins thinks things need to change: “The city needs special treatment to begin to come to terms with the legacy of special mistreatment it suffered. The precise form of that special treatment, and what the pathways of development should be, can be debated, and others are better placed than me to say – but special treatment is precisely what is required.”

This is not just a Glasgow matter, but also affects Scotland. The city needs structural reform to facilitate powerful voices; civic leadership with ambition, and a sustainable, buoyant fiscal base. Glasgow needs to be a city where rubbish is properly collected, and that has an integrated transport system, not just for two weeks during COP26, but for citizens all year round.

But this is not just about Glasgow or blaming the current SNP council or legacy of Labour rule. It requires Scottish-wide ambition, an understanding of the importance of local democracy and the desire to celebrate Glasgow’s place in Scotland and internationally.

A Glasgow without vision and vibrancy, whatever the results in the local elections, will cause future problems for the SNP and the cause of independence. Without a dynamic, successful, championed Glasgow there is a chasm at the heart of Scotland – and that is not good for everyone.