SNP at war over leader
Group in turmoil as Campbell battles on
Factions within the SNP group in South Ayrshire are sparring over the future leadership.
Veteran leader Douglas Campbell is at the centre of a bid to oust him from control.
Our source said: “There is a dynamic in the group that we haven’t faced before.”
Two camps have formed in the bitter war to oust South Ayrshire’s council leader, it can be revealed.
The squabbling SNP group has been carved up by a “new dynamic” threatening to derail its grip on power.
Now factions battling over beleagured leader, Douglas Campbell, are being warned to put their party first.
A senior party source, speaking to the Post this week on grounds of anonymity, confessed: “We face a new element that is not particularly healthy.”
It follows two failed coups on Cllr Campbell and a racism storm that led to the suspension of Cllr Julie Detbarn.
And the Post understands Campbell loyalists Laura Brennan- Whitefield and Siobhian Brown have found themselves “ostracised” in the fallout.
The source said: “There is a dynamic within the group that we haven’t faced before.
“It is an element introduced since the last administration and it is not productive moving forward.
“The split is fairly even but this shouldn’t be about Douglas Campbell’s faction and another faction.
“The focus has to remain on driving through our agenda and working with our partners in power.
“Whatever we do, we cannot let the Tories back in.
“Therefore it is important we keep our administration intact – getting rid of the leader serves no purpose at this stage.”
The latest rift has developed over a proposed cycle crossing in Alloway which saw SNP councillor, Ms Brown, challenge her own administration.
Her decision to call in the proposal – seen as a “show of defiance” – has now placed her long term role in the party in doubt, the Post has learned.
And pressure is also mounting on Ms Whitefield following a series of internal spats.
Party bosses in Edinburgh this week denied they had received an official complaint from within the group over her conduct.
And Cllr Campbell has hit back at the idea his team is fractured.
He told the Post: “I have spoken with my colleagues and none of us recognise the assertion of an ‘ unhealthy element’.
“We are working well as an administration and are delivering excellent services with substantial planned improvements in our facilities.
“Your so- called SNP member’s comments are ill- judged and uninformed.”