LAST WEEK I was in Manchester for Labour's annual conference.

With the Tories in disarray over Europe and Labour ahead in the polls, it looks increasingly likely that we will have a Labour government in power at Westminster in May 2015. And about time too.

Under the Tories the number of people living in poverty has increased, with more than half of those also having a job.

So ending in-work poverty is one of Labour's key aims for government. It was Labour that introduced the minimum wage and I was delighted that Ed Miliband committed to increase the hourly rate to £8.

This is in addition to Labour's pledge to end exploitative zero hours contracts.

Working people should expect to be able to support themselves and their families, and these are the policies and values that will guide the next Labour government.

The NHS was created by Labour and prioritised by successive Labour governments.

In this same tradition Mr Miliband has committed to increasing funding to our NHS by £2.5billion by closing tax loopholes abused by those who don't want to pay their share, and a new tax on houses worth more than £2million.

Labour will also freeze gas and electricity bills and reform an energy market that is failing the interests of hard working families.

These are the Labour policies that I look forward to campaigning on in the months ahead.

IF there is one thing we know about democracy it is that the electorate are never wrong, even if we personally didn't vote the same way as the majority.

The referendum on independence has dominated Scottish politics for nearly three years and after that long campaign the voters have made a clear decision in favour of Scotland staying part of the UK.

Now is the time for both sides of what often seemed a divisive debate to focus on what we have in common - a shared desire for change.

From the thousands of people I spoke to during the campaign, what shone through was a common belief that Scotland can be a better place.

That means a more equal society, where all of our citizens have the opportunity to study, work and bring up their families, and a society that treats our most vulnerable members with compassion and respect.

While people ­disagreed about the constitution I believe that the vast majority of voters who cast their ballots on 18th September shared these values.

As we move on, there is a responsibility on all politicians to work together.

In Glasgow we are paving the way through the £1.13bn City Deal between the UK and Scottish governments and all Clyde Valley councils.

This investment allows us to create thousands of jobs, support new businesses and build much needed housing and transport links.

When it is in the interests of Glasgow and Scotland we must be willing to set aside our differences.

Now is the time to end feelings of division and recover some of the sense of unity we felt just three months ago when we hosted the greatest Commonwealth Games ever.