Labour and SNP launch Glasgow council elections campaigns

Labour and the SNP have launched their rival parties' Glasgow campaigns for the upcoming council elections as they vie to gain control of the historic Labour stronghold.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon joined Glasgow SNP group leader Susan Aitken to launch their manifesto and pledged to create a ''true city government'' and accused Labour of ''letting down'' Glaswegians.

Labour Deputy Leader Tom Watson teamed up with Glasgow City Council leader Frank McAveety to accuse the SNP of cutting £377 million from Glasgow's budget in the past decade and putting an ''obsession'' with a new independence referendum before all else.

Mr Watson said Labour could win ''every election'' with the right team and campaign.

Glasgow has been under Labour control for more than three decades, but the SNP hope to capitalise on overturning Labour seats at the UK and Scottish elections into taking the top spot on May 4.

The SNP manifesto includes pledges to consult on creating a citizen's charter, devolve 1% of the council budget to neighbourhood control and hold an independent review of the council's decision-making processes.

Labour's five-year plan for the city includes building 25,000 houses, guaranteeing 18 to 24-year-olds a job and providing 30 hours free childcare for three and four-years-olds.

Speaking at Glasgow City College, Ms Sturgeon said she wanted Glasgow to flourish as ''one of the great cities of the world''.

She said: ''The SNP isn't simply seeking to be an administration, it is seeking to be a true city government providing the leadership, the direction and the ambition that this city is crying out for.

We've learned from the many mistakes of the current administration. Let there be no doubt that this tired, complacent and out-of-date Labour administration serves as a visible reminder to all of us not take the people of Glasgow for granted.''

She said the days of ''top-down decision-making'' would be over, adding: ''For far too long, our communities have been let down by Labour. But we will not let you down.''

At the Labour launch at Gorbals Parish Church, Mr Watson said: ''Only Labour can stop the SNP in Glasgow. The choice facing voters is between Labour's plan to move Glasgow forward or the SNP obsession with holding another referendum over all priorities.''

He said the SNP's record in the city included inflicting more budget cuts than on any other council in Scotland, slashing funding every year for a decade.

He said: ''Voters in Glasgow and across the country can send the SNP a message in May - stop dividing our country and get on with the job of investing in local public services.''

Asked about division in his own party hitting election chances, he said: ''The issue on this campaign is not where Labour is nationally.

Labour can win with every election with the right team and the right campaign message when it listens to voters on the doorstep and engages them.''

He praised Mr McAveety for having done that in past four years and having ''reformed Labour on the ground over many years''.