Scottish Council Elections 2017: 11/04/2017 Party Election Broadcasts: Scottish Labour Party

Since the independence referendum,

friendships and families have been divided.

We've seen so much division,

so much of the politics of us and them.

You can no longer have a healthy conversation about politics.

It's now become a thing that you just don't talk about,

if you don't want to start an argument.

Other Scots looked at you in a different way,

just because you chose a different vision for your country.

We've spent too many years

obsessing over the differences that

divide us and we've not achieved

anything greater within that time.

I'm from the Western Isles, and I've had lots of friends and

family have to move away from the island to find work on the mainland.

It's become a particular problem for young people in Scotland today.

We need a government that's focused on creating jobs all across

the country, no matter where you live.

Politics is already so polarised,

and the attention's been taken away from places where it should be.

As a medical student, you do see the struggles

of the healthcare service.

I work as a domestic at St John's in Livingston.

It's sad to see one of our greatest assets

as a country just left at the side of the agenda.

When the NHS works, it changes people's lives.

It's such an important part of being Scottish.

Right now, I'm training to be a teacher,

because if my teachers weren't there for me,

then I would have probably fallen through the railings.

Education is the most powerful weapon that a country can ever use,

and that's why I think it's so important that we invest in it

instead of cutting it.

We need a government that will build more houses,

especially more affordable houses.

It doesn't matter whether you're rich or poor,

everyone should have the same chance and opportunity

to own a home at some point in their lifetime.

Unity means pulling together for the benefit of everyone,

despite where someone comes from or what they look like.

The world is changing so quickly

that it's more important than ever that Scotland's voice is heard.

The best way to achieve this is as part of the UK,

while still allowing the decisions that affect Scotland the most

to be taken in the Scottish Parliament.

We're divided enough, we need to unite now,

we need to see what's best for Scotland.

There's far more that we agree on than what we disagree on,

and that's what we should be focusing on for our future.

Scotland is stronger as a nation when we work together.

Just look at what we've achieved in the past -

the NHS, the minimum wage, the Scottish Parliament,

all things won against the odds because we chose to stand as one.

We have an opportunity now to create a nation that we all want.

We all voted for a better Scotland - let's make one.