Gun drummer makes £100k donation to Glasgow LEZ Fight Bank Fund

Paul last month pledged to donate £100,000 to the LEZ Fight Bank Fund and said he would be prepared to make further funds available. Mr McManus has a range of business interests including ownership of Lanark-based Cloburn Quarry, recording studios and music management companies.

The musician revealed in May that he had finally been given the all-clear after a bowel cancer scare and between that, and the birth of a granddaughter, it has caused him to take stock and “seize the day”. Paul has also previously donated £130,000 to the Scottish Labour party in 2022 as a vote of confidence in its leader, Anas Sarwar MSP.

Paul is close friend with leisure industry mogul Donald MacLeod MBE, who is part of the LEZ Fight Back initiative alongside campaigner, William Paton, company director of Patons Accident Repair Centre in Townhead.

Donald MacLeod said: “I knew from the moment we started the campaign that it would appeal to Paul and he had no hesitation in asking us how much we needed.”

Paul McManus said: “I believe this is a cynical stealth tax, levied by a failed and discredited administration, and which is aimed at and has a significantly disproportionate effect on poor, low-paid, hardworking families who are currently struggling to cope with an unprecedented increase in their cost of living.

“It will also affect struggling city centre businesses and result in an even steeper decline in the condition of our once proud city.

“I also note that the same administration is considering a further attack on vulnerable people and sectors by seeking to impose further tax in the form of congestion charges. Further, it appears they had cynically hoped to keep these plans under wraps until after the forthcoming local Rutherglen by-election, thus deliberately attempting to deceive voters of their true intentions.”

“I am committed to fighting this all the way and I’ll make available additional and sufficient funds to ensure we can take the SNP Glasgow City Council on in any forthcoming court cases.”

McManus said his life changed when his granddaughter was born and he wants to give young people more chances in life.

Paul continued: “I want a fair society without the current politics of division, and with particular focus on the quality of education and genuine opportunities for our young.

“That wee girl really brought home to me what’s important – there are kids just like her all over Scotland who go to bed hungry, cold, or don’t even have a bed to go to. That is heartbreaking and it’s something we all need to address.

“She lit a spark in me – I want her to have everything she dreams of in life, to know she can be anything she wants to be. But the big thing is, I want that for all kids.

“I want those opportunities to be there for every child, not just those born to privileged families.

“So, I am going to do all I can to try and make the world – and first and foremost Scotland – a better, fairer place for all children and young people. She has made me see what is really important and for that I can never thank her enough.”

Paul added: “I see no viable future for our children and grandchildren under the present administrations in Edinburgh and Westminster.

McManus’ band Gun have released seven studio albums, three of which made the UK Top 20 and they enjoyed eight Top 40 singles.

Their biggest hit was a cover of Cameo’s ‘Word Up!’, which broke into the Top 10. They have also supported the Rolling Stones and are touring later in the year. On December 9, they play the Barrowload Ballroom.

The LEZ Fightback Campaign, under the leadership of Glasgow car repair business owner William Paton, has a procedural hearing at the High Court on September 29 followed by a substantive hearing on October 17 in front of Lady Poole.

William Paton said: “The data that council is relying on to proceed with phase two is over half a decade out of date. It was collated pre-Covid, pre-hybrid working and most importantly, pre-phase one of the LEZ which addressed the largest and only significant polluters – buses.

“The buses are now totally compliant, and we know that emissions will continue to fall without any further action due to the natural cycle of cleaner vehicles replacing older vehicles.

“The council’s impact assessments show that phase two will massively and disproportionately affect those who can least afford to make the changes required to comply – including those on lower incomes, those with special care needs, those with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups. It also shows it will greatly increase inequality, thereby risking an increase in the poverty-related attainment gap.”