Local Health Services: The SNP Health Secretary Shona Robison paid a short visit to the Vale of Leven Hospital last month in a bid to brush off recent reports that local services are under threat from a £60 million black hole in the health board’s finances for next year.

She tried to play down the cuts by telling local people that the leaked report from the health board was only in draft form and that it did not take account of the recent budget uplift from the SNP Government.

Fast forward to a couple of days after the visit and the health board published the final version of the paper which revealed that the size of the budget shortfall has actually increased to £69 million, and that’s after you include the budget uplift.

It’s time for the SNP to come clean about what these cuts will mean for the future of services at the Vale. People deserve to know the facts before they cast their votes so we cannot let this decision be kicked into the long grass.

Trident: Nicola Sturgeon told a rally in London last weekend that she would make Trident the main issue of the SNP’s campaign for the Holyrood elections in May.

The fact is that Trident renewal is not something in the SNP leader’s gift. A final decision will be taken this year in the House of Commons and there are enough Labour MPs who will use their votes to safeguard jobs and our manufacturing industry.

The SNP’s grandstanding on Trident is nothing more than a cynical attempt to divert attention away from its dismal record on health, education and policing. However, if they really want to make this election a debate about Trident then that is exactly what they will get from me.

My position on Trident remains as clear as ever. I have consistently defended the workforce at Faslane and Coulport during my 16 years as the local MSP for Helensburgh and Lomond and I will not be changing my mind any time soon.

Much has been said about creating alternative jobs but I have yet to hear a single convincing argument about how this would be done for the thousands of workers at the base. Defence diversification has been tried before and failed. Local people deserve to know whether their jobs and future are secure.