PROBLEMS on our railways continue to be one of the main issues raised by constituents. After 10 years of SNP Government, passengers in East Lothian and across Scotland are paying over the odds for overcrowded, late-running trains.

The performance of ScotRail has come under scrutiny in recent months thanks to concerted pressure from Scottish Labour. Our plan for a fares freeze in 2017 was ignored by SNP Transport Minister Humza Yousaf, whose alternative plan does nothing to help low-income commuters.

There’s a better way to run the railways in Scotland and that is with a People’s ScotRail. We need a public transport system that puts passengers first and the case for a People’s ScotRail gets more compelling by the week. It works for other countries like the Netherlands, France and Germany and there is no reason it can’t work here.

That is why I am delighted that Scottish Labour conference will formally vote to commit to a publicly-owned People’s ScotRail this week. This would ensure a much greater say for passengers on how services are run.

The SNP’s failure to get to grips with our railways is also yet another example of the way they are neglecting running Scotland. We have a crisis in our NHS, a growing attainment gap in our schools and enduring rail problems, yet Nicola Sturgeon is preoccupied with when to call a second independence referendum.

We were told by Ms Sturgeon and her predecessor that the last referendum was a once-in-a-lifetime, once-in-a-generation opportunity. We spent two-and-a-half years as a country talking about this, went to vote in huge numbers and said ‘no’.

The result of that referendum needs to be respected and we need to move on to providing the very best public services we can, including a reliable rail service.