YESTERDAY saw the funeral of Councillor George Ryan, with hundreds of his family and friends packing into St Andrew's Cathedral to pay respects and celebrate his life.

George was a champion for the East End and made a real difference to many people across the city and further afield. I know that George's family have taken comfort from the messages of support and condolence that have poured in from people who knew George, and many who didn't but who - through his actions - found their lives touched by him.

He was a man of deep convictions and worked tirelessly to change people's lives for the better. He loved the Labour Party, his home city Glasgow and Celtic Football Club.

But above all he loved his family.

George's passing came as a huge blow to many people. As well as being a well respected colleague, George was a true friend and comrade to many of us in the City Chambers, making yesterday's funeral particularly difficult.

The number of people coming to pay their respects to George showed just how popular and how much loved he was. He meant a lot to an incredible amount of people.

One thing is for sure, the City Chambers will never be the same without him.

IT HAS been a week of mixed emotions in the City Chambers.

As we lost one of our most prominent and popular councillors, we welcomed a new colleague to the Council following a hard-fought by-election in Govan.

The joy many of us felt as Labour's John Kane swept to victory in Govan was tempered by the sad news of earlier in the week.

But one thing is sure, George Ryan would have been one of the first to celebrate Labour's resounding by-election victory in Govan.

John has a hard act to follow in Councillor Allison Hunter, who worked tirelessly for her constituents, but I'm certain he will be a dedicated and hard-working representative for the residents of the Govan ward.

With less than one year to go to the referendum and on the eve of the SNP conference, the people of Glasgow have made it clear that they want their politicians to focus on jobs, the cost of living, childcare, housing and community safety - and not the abstraction of separatism.

Councillor Kane joins a strong Labour administration which continues to focus on the issues that matter to people.

The by-election was a resounding victory for Labour, with John Kane securing over 600 more first preference votes than our nearest rival. There's no way the SNP can spin their way out of this result.

No sooner had he arrived in the City Chambers on Friday, than Councillor Kane received his first inquiry from a constituent.

This is his first full week as a councillor and I am sure that John will go on to be a fantastic representative for the people of Govan.