BOWLERS: WHY JO HAD TO GO
How indoor bowlers got revenge after MP’s party left them out of new leisure centre
ANGRY indoor bowlers claim they played a key role in Jo Swinson losing her Westminster seat.
They say they got revenge against the former Lib Dem leader as they believed she played a major part in their exclusion from a £33million leisure complex replacement.
Swinson lost her East Dunbartonshire seat at the election earlier this month. She was beaten, by just 149 votes, by the SNP’s Amy Callaghan.
Some members of Allander Indoor Bowling Club in Bearsden, near Glasgow, claim Swinson’s loss was because of her party’s bias against 300 bowlers.
They were fuming that the Lib Dem and Conservative-led East Dunbartonshire Council didn’t put a bowling hall in the plans for the new leisure centre.
Yesterday, the secretary of the closure-threatened club Sandy Torrie was unrepentant over the result and revealed bowling club members had been urged to vote tactically, and spread the word to others, to oust Swinson.
Sandy said: “The Lib Dems had their party line and chose to vote against having a bowling hall in the new sports centre.
“My wife went to the meeting when it was voted on and it was a 13-7 vote for every issue raised. It wasn’t just about the bowling but other aspects, too. Every 13-7 vote followed the party whip.”
Councillors saw no need for a bowling hall in the new centre, claiming membership had slumped from 700 in 2005. But the club disputed the figure and despite having just over 300 members, more than 2500 supporters backed a petition for a bowling hall.
The bowlers were left with nowhere to go and accused the council of “stringing them along” with a promise of “like-for-like” facilities.
Sandy said: “We felt undone by the Lib Dems and the Conservatives on our council.
“We were looking for a change of direction.
“We didn’t know there was going to be a general election so soon but said, ‘Come election time, don’t vote for the Lib Dems’. That was the message that went out through the bowling fraternity – and I certainly didn’t vote for the Lib Dems.
“I’ve got nothing against Jo as a person. I’ve had some thoughts about the party but not her.
“She was personally involved in communication.
“She more or less came up with the position, ‘I’m very sorry, I’ve done all I can and the decision has been taken.’ She did communicate with us and did not turn her back on us in that respect.”
The row even reached the Scottish Parliament when SNP MSP Gil Paterson accused the council of reneging on a 10-year commitment that bowling facilities would be included in the new centre.
He said: “East Dunbartonshire Council has an obligation to provide facilities and services to enhance the health and well-being of its older citizens. This retrograde step should be reversed.”
Earlier, joint council leader Vaughan Moody told his local newspaper: “I’m happy, along with my fellow councillors, in the Lib Dem/Conservative administration bringing forward the building of a new Allander, which will replace the present one in two years.
“The bowling club membership has dropped from more than 700 in 2005 to 300 now. The new Allander should last at least 50 years.
“Your readers can draw their own conclusion as to why the bowling club hall was not included in the new building.”
Swinson refused to comment when her party aides were contacted by the Record.