I THINK it’s fair to say 2018 was a year to forget in UK politics. The word uncertainty was thrown around a lot but one thing we can all be certain of now that 2019 has arrived is that this Tory UK Government is on its last legs.

Theresa May postponed the meaningful vote on her Brexit deal as she knew there was no way MPs would support her disastrous plan back in December.

Jeremy Corbyn finally decided to put in a vote of no confidence but not in the Government itself – just a meaningless motion of no confidence in the Prime Minister. Much like everything Mr Corbyn does as the ‘opposition’, this was nothing more than a grandstanding gesture in the out-of-date UK Parliament rather than anything meaningful with substance.

To be honest, I wouldn’t have been surprised if Corbyn abstained on his own motion.

Whether you voted to remain or leave the EU, I am sure nobody voted for their families to be worse off.

Research shows Scotland will be economically worse off if we go ahead with the Tories’ deal. Scotland did not vote for Brexit and neither did Renfrewshire. The political games being played by both the Tories and Labour down in Westminster are making us a laughing stock on the international stage, with very little thought given to the people who have to live with these decisions. The Tories and Labour are not living in the real world.

While the chaos that is Brexit has been unfolding, we saw this UK Government get away with murder in 2018. We have had the Windrush scandal, Cambridge Analytica, another austerity budget, Universal Credit, the government being found in contempt of Parliament and the UN Rapporteur reporting the UK Government was in “a state of denial” about the extreme poverty they have forced on the very same people they are elected to protect. It truly is shambolic that this government is still in office.

Every sitting day in Westminster, myself and my SNP colleagues get up and suggest different ways this austerity-obsessed government could be governing the people with more common sense, compassion and equality, yet every single day these suggestions are ignored.

Universal Credit has been the latest scar on our communities. The Scottish Government and Renfrewshire Council have mitigated to help ease the burden with the little remit they have to support those suffering. Unfortunately, Universal Credit is still leaving families in absolute poverty. My office is contacted by people needing assistance almost every day. Thank goodness we have Renfrewshire Foodbank, along with the organisations, charities, businesses and people around Renfrewshire who provide vital support for those who are struggling in these hard times.

My hope is there is light at the end of the tunnel and 2019 can be a belter of a year in politics.

I hope all Gazette readers have a fantastic 2019 and you all stick to your resolutions.