Greens and SNP in Glasgow deal that echoes Holyrood coalition

The Scottish Greens have reached a deal with the SNP that will see the party take up key roles in Glasgow council and secure an SNP minority administration.

The leader of the glasgow s np group, Susan Aitken, will likely lead the minority administrationand retain the leadership of the council, after the party won 37 seats in the local elections on May 5.

The Scottish Greens saw significant gains, winning ten seats. Their support – understood to only be binding for the initial creation of a council administration – will secure SNP leadership in Scotland’s biggest city in a deal that echoes the coalition that runs the devolved government at Holyrood.

Together there are 47 Green and SNP councillors, easily reaching a majority vote at the council.

The deal will mean the greens are not bound by any agreement to vote in certain ways in future council meetings and commits the SNP to working closely with the party to develop Glasgow’s strategic plan.

They will also take on the position of chair of a new net zero and climate progress monitoring committee and a Just Transition Working Group.

Greens will also chair the neighbourhoods, housing and public realm committee, and will vice-chair the education and environment committees in the council. Scottish Labour, which narrowly missed out on becoming the biggest party in the city by one seat, recently ditched former leader malcolm Cunning. George Redmond, who spent five years out of the city chambers, was named as the Labour group’s new leader on Monday.

The Scottish Conservatives, who dropped from eight seats to two, do not have a group large enough to create a unionist majority alongside Labour. Green group co-convenor, Cllr Martha Wardrop, said: “The recent election result clearly showed us that the people of Glasgow agreed with our vision for a more effective, more democratic and forward-looking council.

"With our largest ever group of Green councillors, we will hold a minority SNP administration to account while working collaboratively across party lines to deliver a fairer, greener and more inclusive Glasgow and to bring about the change that people voted for.”