THE choice being presented by many in the media over the past few days has been that people in Scotland will have to decide between the same old Westminster parties offering more of the same.

But the good news is that democracy doesn’t work like that. We know that people in Scotland have another choice.

Instead of accepting the broken Westminster status quo, people can choose to put the interests of people in Scotland first by voting SNP on July 4 – Independence Day.

Electing SNP MPs will show that Scotland doesn’t want to be taken for granted by Westminster party leaders – that Scotland wants its distinctive voice to be heard and respected.

Like the majority of people across Scotland, I am delighted we finally have the opportunity to see the back of this Tory government – and it is only the SNP that are best placed to remove Tory MPs in Scotland.

Voting Labour won’t get rid of Tory MPs in Scotland – in fact, it could actually contribute to them holding seats and even gain them!

At the last Westminster election, the SNP won 48 seats in Scotland compared to Labour’s one. That in itself shows the SNP are best placed to beat the Tories in Scotland.

Labour were so disinterested in defeating the Tories in Scotland that as late as the end of March, they had no candidates in any of the constituencies held by the Tories here.

And as polling expert John Curtice has said recently, Labour don’t need to win a single seat in Scotland to win a majority.

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But there’s more reasons for Keir Starmer’s Labour not being a real alternative – their adoption of Tory policies.

They’ve praised Margaret Thatcher and said they’d carry on with this Tory government’s spending plans, which will mean more austerity cuts – particularly for the most vulnerable.

Starmer has said he’s happy to be branded a “fiscal conservative” and said he “doesn’t care” if people think his policies are conservative.

Besides, as history shows, the only guaranteed outcome of a Westminster Labour government is the Tory government that follows it, and which normally lasts a lot longer.

But there’s a fundamental reason Rishi Sunak’s Tories and Starmer’s Labour are not the choice Scotland needs – their lack of real plans to grow our economy and tackle the cost of living crisis.

Both Labour and the Tories are now so wedded to supporting Brexit – which Scotland overwhelmingly opposed – they offer no substantial policies to address the priorities of the Scottish people.

Brexit has wiped billions from the Scottish economy and seen prices – especially food prices – shoot up.

The SNP are the only major party addressing this major problem affecting the economy and the cost of living – and the only major party proposing a solution.

Rejoining the EU single market – the world’s largest – is a policy that marks the SNP out from the other major parties.

READ MORE: Experts react as candidates 'parachuted' into constituencies they know nothing about

By “ignoring” Brexit, the Westminster parties are ignoring the cost of living and economy. They are ignoring the priorities of people across Scotland – and voters deserve so much better.

There’s also another reason Scotland needs to reverse Brexit – our NHS. Brexit affects almost every policy area and the NHS is not immune.

Brexit has hit the economy hard, which has affected tax revenues to fund our public services. It has also created shortages in qualified staff we previously welcomed from EU countries, as well as shortages in medicines because of added customs costs.

But it’s not only Brexit that is hurting our NHS – it’s Westminster.

We know that Tory UK governments are a constant threat when it comes to privatising the NHS, but Starmer’s Labour are proving to pose just as much of a threat too.

Labour plans for the NHS should concern us all. Wes Streeting said Labour would withhold funding if the NHS didn’t use private providers and he’s said Labour would “hold the door open” for the private sector in the NHS.

So I’m asking people across Scotland to vote SNP to send a very clear message – let’s unite Scotland to protect our NHS from Westminster.

Let’s send a clear signal that while the Tories and Labour may have given up fighting for a better future, Scotland never will.

Let’s send as many SNP MPs as possible down to Westminster to work day and night to build a better future for everyone in Scotland.

To put the interests of Scotland first in this election, vote SNP.