Isn’t it time we had a can-do mayor like Andy to work for us? - Susan Dalgety

Andy Burnham, mayor of Greater Manchester, is one of a number of directly elected city politicians who have made a difference south of the Border (Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Last week, he and his buddy Steven Purcell, a former leader of Glasgow City Council, called for directly elected mayors for Scotland’s top cities.

And more, they suggested that these new city chiefs should work together to promote “Scotland’s Growth Corridor”, the area in and around the two cities.

It makes sense. The two cities are less than 50 miles apart, with only a 50-minute train journey separating them. It sometimes takes me as long to get to Musselburgh on the 26 bus as it does to travel from Haymarket to Glasgow’s Queen Street.

And more than half of Scots – 3.2 million people – live in the Central Belt, making it the engine room of Scotland’s economic, social and cultural life.

Imagine if the two cities worked more closely together, led by elected mayors whose sole focus was the region’s growth rather than petty party politics, which too often dominate our council chambers.

Twenty-five years ago, when the Scottish Parliament opened its doors for the first time only a stone’s throw from the City Chambers, many were optimistic that devolution would bring huge benefits to the city.

Instead of trying to catch the attention of Westminster politicians who, out of necessity, spent much of their time in London, the people who ran the country would be on our doorstep.

But instead of sharing power with their council colleagues, Holyrood’s new parliamentarians largely turned their backs on our cities.

Edinburgh is the lowest funded council per head in Scotland, despite its importance as the capital city. And the Scottish Government’s city strategy was published back in 2011, with a few updates in 2016.

The world and our city has changed significantly since then.

Commentators often point to the success of Greater Manchester’s mayor, Andy Burnham, when arguing for directly elected mayors.

The former Labour health secretary has carved out a big role for himself on the national stage as the unofficial “King of the North”, as well as successfully promoting his city and region as a place to do business.

Greater Manchester’s economy is predicted to comfortably outpace UK growth in the three years up to 2027.

Burnham’s popularity is down to more than his good looks, though his eyelashes are an internet sensation among women of a certain age.

He is widely regarded as a staunch advocate for his city, someone who is not afraid to challenge his party to stand up for the people of Greater Manchester.

Following his re-election in May, he set up a “housing first” unit in his drive to build 10,000 council homes, and called on the new Labour government to release public land so that it could be used for housing.

Imagine an elected mayor with the personality and powers to challenge the Scottish and UK governments on issues such as the housing emergency, funding for our international arts festivals and support for Edinburgh University’s ground-breaking super computer, which has just lost £800 million of government funding. She would definitely get my vote.