THE 25th anniversary of the Scottish Parliament, which will fall in just a few months’ time, ought to be a moment for celebration.
Instead, it is more likely Holyrood will have just marked the most tumultuous, unproductive and scandal-ridden period in its brief history.
Much of the end-of-year attention as we come into Christmas will undoubtedly be on the internal difficulties being experienced by Scotland’s governing party.
And there’s no question the SNP have had a terrible time of it, from high-profile resignations and arrests to accounting woes and a membership exodus.
But amid that scrutiny, we shouldn’t forget how badly the people and businesses of Glasgow suffer when the dominant administration falls into chaos.
By May, two-and-a-half decades after Holyrood’s first meeting, the SNP will have been in charge for 17 years.
And while numerous shortcomings have gradually racked up in that time, 2023 has been the year where the nationalist era has properly looked like it’s coming to an end.
As you walk across Glasgow these short, medium and long-term failures of Government are all too apparent.
The city’s SNP administration insisted on being first out of the blocks in implementing the controversial Low Emission Zone (LEZ).
It’s a policy which discriminates aggressively against those who cannot afford a new car and are therefore excluded from driving into our city centre.
They’ve been forced to remain on the fringes or expected to rely on an ever-declining public transport system.
The scheme has hit plenty of hard-working motorists in the pocket and has riled businesses who are understandably worried about a drop in footfall.
In more recent years we’ve also witnessed the impact of local government funding cuts.
Litter constantly gathers in once-proud city spaces, graffiti goes uncleaned from walls and doors, and even refuse collectors are wary about attending some areas because of the vermin which has been allowed to breed out of control.
And then there’s the longer-term neglect of an SNP government which has been distracted by things that really just aren’t that important.
While it pursues an obsessive campaign to break up the UK, key areas of devolved responsibility have been left to rot.
No one who has a loved one in hospital can be happy with the current state of the NHS in the city.
The scandal-hit Queen Elizabeth University Hospital was meant to be a flagship hospital fit for the 21st century.
Instead, it has been beset by scandal, and the performance in relation to waiting times and delayed discharge isn’t much better.
Crime is up again as ministers seek to impose further cuts to police, and barely a week goes by when another strike at a city school – a hugely disruptive process for pupils who have already missed out on so much – isn’t threatened because of poor pay and bad conditions, not to mention spiralling violence endured by kids and teachers.
So much could have been achieved in these last 25 years of devolution.
So much could have been done with serious powers over health, education, justice and the economy.
So many could be better off if only the Scottish Government had focused on the things that really matter.
But none of it has happened, and Glaswegians can testify better than anyone that – as far as this silver anniversary goes – there is little to celebrate.
By Annie Wells, Glasgow Times