Today marks the start of Lent. For many folk, this might involve giving up chocolate, biscuits, alcohol or an unhealthy habit.

For Sir Keir Starmer, who seems intent on U-turning on his own policies at any available opportunity, it has left me wondering if he actually has anything left to give up this year.

His backing down on Labour’s flagship £28 billion green investment pledge is the latest example and represents a complete betrayal of Scotland’s renewables industry. But is anyone really shocked?

Sir Keir’s track record includes a pledge to abolish the House of Lords which he has now dropped, a refusal to undo the very worst Tory policies such as the two-child policy and abhorrent rape clause, and an announcement that he now supports scrapping the cap on bankers’ bonuses.

This growing list of broken Labour promises and U-turns is what we’ve come to expect from the man who bizarrely praised Thatcher’s damaging legacy and threatened his own MPs with the sack if they supported striking workers on picket lines.

As other countries continue to set ambitious targets and ramp up green investment, Westminster has once again shown it is incapable of prioritising Scotland’s green energy future, regardless of whether the Prime Minister at the time is wearing a blue or a red rosette.

The Labour Party’s latest ­U-turn is undoubtedly damaging. Sir Keir’s watered-down plan would see investment in our communities slashed and force Scotland to pay for nuclear projects in other parts of the UK.

Make no mistake, it’ll be families across Scotland who will pay the price in lost jobs, wages and investment. As the race to net-zero continues, the UK hasn’t even reached the start line yet, and as a result, people in Scotland will pay the price.

In the process of knocking some zeros off their multi-billion pound commitment, Labour are now left with zero credibility and only have themselves to blame.

His countless U-turns have now made it undeniable that Sir Keir’s values and priorities could not be further from those of people in Scotland, and indeed people here in Glasgow East.

As the list of broken promises only grows, this must be a warning for people across Scotland as we head into General Election territory.

The current Westminster landscape is one defined by broken promises and backtracking and regardless of whether it is Sir Keir or his Tory counterpart in Number 10 after the next election, what matters is who is there to hold them to account.

This is why it is essential for Scotland to return a strong team of SNP MPs to Westminster, to make sure that Scottish voices and values are heard.

They say a week is a long time in politics, but I wonder where we will be after the 40 days of Lent?

Will Sir Keir bow to political pressure and resurrect his green investment plans?

I doubt it and think it’s more likely that more of his big

pledges will end up being lost in the wilderness.