ON Friday, readers of the Glasgow Times will have seen the dire warning from nightclub owner and entrepreneur, Donald MacLeod MBE, on its front page.

Donald is a veteran of the Glasgow music scene owning both the Cathouse and Garage nightclubs.

His warning was very clear: policy makers in Holyrood and the City Chambers MUST act urgently or face our famous night-time industry closing for good.

It’s a warning that I myself have issued numerous times in the pages of the Glasgow Times and the corridors of the City Chambers.

I speak regularly with business leaders across Glasgow who have been sounding the alarm since 2017 that something isn’t right. Those alarm bells only got louder when the Covid pandemic hit and has left us in the deeply concerning situation the industry is now in today.

The stark reality is that this is the legacy of lockdown policies, a lack of night-time transportation, the incoming Low Emission Zone (LEZ), and proposed government initiatives including the deposit return scheme (DRS) which are battering the industry and as Donald makes clear politicians seem incapable of taking necessary action.

Take the LEZ as an example. You’ll have all heard me speak on this issue a number a of times regarding the taxi trade, but what about others?

What about my cousin, and his band, who travel around by van playing gigs and looking for their big break? Can they afford a brand new LEZ compliant vehicle to get them to King Tut’s or the Garage?

Or those delivery trucks that take alcohol and other products to these venues, what are they to do? Park across the Kingston Bridge and arrange for other transport to enter the LEZ?

Once again, we have politicians seeking to make headlines without the foggiest idea of how the supply chain and the economy works.

Glasgow’s night-time economy is worth billions to our city, and Scotland as a whole. It’s something worth protecting, and an issue very close to my heart as I am a frequent visitor to our many venues.

On Friday, I was delighted to have been elected vice-convener of the Glasgow Licensing Board, a position I will take extremely seriously. It’s a cross-party board of elected members who leave our political hats at the door and do what we think is best for our city.

In that new role, I’ll be working with colleagues to write Glasgow’s new licensing policy for the next five years. I pledge to our industry that alongside Licensing Board chair bailie Margaret Morgan, you have a friend and ally in the leadership of that board. We’ll do all we can to stand up for jobs, our economy and our vital hospitality and night-time sector.

But we can’t do it alone.

That’s why I urge all elected members from Glasgow to get together and sort these issues out.

He might not live in the city anymore but Humza Yousaf – our First Minister – still represents it.

I would hope that he has seen the warnings from Donald and other businesses about the state of Glasgow’s nightlife. Or perhaps he is too distracted by the chaos and infighting engulfing the SNP.

He should get out of his ivory tower and tackle the real issues facing businesses worried every day about going to the wall.

If Humza Yousaf and others in position of authority do not wake up, we risk losing billions from our economy, thousands of jobs and our worldwide reputation as Glasgow being at the epicentre of music.

Let’s ensure that does not happen.