The university tutor noted the impact last year's referendum had on the country by increasing politicaly engagement.

But, he argues, the forthcoming voite, offers everyone the opportunity to create a brighter future for everyone across the UK.

And he says the Lib Dems can be a constructive influence in the corridors of power.

Delivering his opening pitch in the Barrhead News, he wrote: "I’m standing here in the election to give you a real choice. From talking to people on the doorsteps in recent weeks, I get the distinct impression that there is still a lot of disaffection with our politics. The referendum energised a lot of people. What we now need to do, though, is focus that renewed engagement in a way that is constructive.

"We need a UK government that tries to govern for the whole of the country, not just a faction of it.

"I joined the Liberal Democrats in April 2011. I suspect the membership department was not particularly busy at the time! If anything, though, I think the need for strong liberal voices in Scottish politics has scarcely ever been greater.

"My experience in public law, as a University tutor and postgraduate researcher, has drawn me towards the issue of civil liberties. Both Labour and the Conservatives at Westminster and the SNP at Holyrood show that we badly need a party prepared to fight for our freedoms: to block ID cards; stop routine snooping of your online communications; and to end Police Scotland’s abuse of stop and search powers on children.

"I want to be a champion for that civil liberties agenda. It isn’t the only respect in which the Liberal approach is the best for East Renfrewshire, but it is the area in which our instincts are most fundamentally different. My appeal to you in the coming weeks is simple: if you think like a Liberal, then vote for one."