I HAD the honour to represent East Lothian in Parliament between 2015 and 2017 and it was the proudest moment of my life. It afforded me an unparalleled understanding and knowledge of the county and its people.

I am offering myself again because the county is being let down dramatically by the present political system – both by a chaotic Westminster and by a Holyrood obsessed with identity politics. East Lothian needs a champion with experience and focus. My time at Westminster showed me just how dysfunctional and unreformable the present system is, which is why Alba is putting Scottish independence first on the ballot paper – because we can’t change things for the better unless we fix how decisions are made.

Of course, there are immediate bread-and-butter problems that can’t be put off, such as tackling climate change and the cost-of-living crisis. But electing a Labour government won’t bring change, only more of the same – including cuts to local services that Labour is refusing to speak about.

As your MP, I will campaign to get the London and Edinburgh parliaments to agree to a statutory (and significant) community benefit levied on the big offshore energy generators. This should be paid directly to the local council and local NHS to support services in East Lothian. I will lobby tirelessly to force the Scottish Government to live up to its neglected promise to reform the GP contract, to pay doctors per patient visit. This will provide the incentives to bring more GPs to East Lothian.

East Lothian needs a working MP, not a political absentee sitting in the Cabinet. We need more powers to take decisions here in East Lothian itself. The political class at Holyrood has created its own self-serving imitation of Westminster. Referendums were promised but never materialised. Scottish independence is not about flags but about a radical devolution of power directly to the people. That is Alba’s message.

I know some sincere independence supporters think Alba is only going to split the nationalist vote. But there is a greater danger that so many people are disillusioned with politics that they won’t vote. This will only guarantee us a return to New Labour and the failed Blairism that plunged us into the Iraq War and let greedy bankers run rampant and unregulated. One definition of madness is repeating failure endlessly – as in voting Labour – in the hope something will change. I am standing to give disillusioned voters – especially disillusioned SNP voters – a better choice.

If elected, I will accept for personal use only a salary equivalent to the average (median) full-time wage in Scotland, which is £33,332. This is because I feel an MP should understand and reflect the life of their constituents. The current basic annual salary of a Member of Parliament is £91,346, and much more for a government minister. Anything I am paid above the average wage I will donate to good causes in the constituency.

George Kerevan biography - I was MP for East Lothian from 2015 to 2017. Earlier, I served 12 years as a local councillor in Edinburgh, where I oversaw the Capital’s economic development. I lectured in economics at Napier University and served on the House of Commons Treasury Committee, which oversees the Bank of England. I was associate editor of The Scotsman newspaper for 10 years. My articles have also appeared in The Spectator, New Statesman, Independent and Guardian. I served on the boards of the Edinburgh Festival, Science Festival and Traverse theatre. I have published several books, including one supporting Scottish independence. My many documentary films include Spank the Banker, which championed the rights of small businesses exploited by big banks. Glasgow-born, I have lived near Musselburgh for 35 years.