WLC STALEMATE ‘It’s a shambles’
Attempt to form administration fails a second t ime
Attempts to form a new West Lothian Council were called a “shambles” on Thursday as councillors failed to appoint a new administration for the second week in a row.
In a fiery meeting where only the provost was appointed - Conservative councillor Tom Kerr returning to the post - the SNP accused Labour of stalling proceedings in an attempt to form a Labour-Tory alliance.
Any such alliance would of course put West Lothian’s Labour councillors on a collision course with their party’s National Executive who have ruled out any such pact and have suspended councillors in Aberdeen for forming such an alliance.
In the only appointment of the day, Labour group leader, Lawrence Fitzpatrick, nominated Councillor Kerr for provost in a motion that was carried 19 votes to 13 - with Labour’s Dom McGuire abstaining.
After Councillor Ker r ’ s appointment, the meeting descended into a heated stalemate as Councillor Fitzpatrick moved to defer all further appointments as they arose, with the SNP arguing that decisions should be made at Thursday’s meeting.
Councillor Fitzpatrick’s motions to defer were all carried by 20 votes to 13 as Labour, Tories and Independent councillors all voted in favour of the motions while all SNP councillors voted against.
This voting pattern caused outrage among the SNP camp who saw it as a sign that Labour were forming a pact with the Tories, with SNP depute leader Councillor Frank Anderson calling the meeting a “shambles”.
The SNP also claimed in the meeting that they had offered Labour a deal in talks before the meeting to have joint leaders of the council with executive positions split down the middle between the two parties.
Speaking after the meeting, SNP group leader Peter Johnston said: “We were prepared to work with the Labour Party in the best interests of our communities but it is now clear that Labour prefer to sacrifice our services and our communities in return for Tory votes to put them jointly into control. Today it became clear that whilst Labour were pretending to talk with us they were doing a shabby behind-the-scenes deal with the Tories – now thrown out by the Labour National Executive. This has resulted in today’s farcical two- and- a- half hour council meeting where Labour and the Tories repeatedly voted together to elect a Tory Provost and postpone all other appointments, presumably in the hope that they can persuade their Executive to roll over and sanction a West Lothian Labour - Tory deal.”
Following the meeting, Councillor Fitzpatrick, said: “We’ve had a strong and secure minority Labour administration in West Lothian for the past five years. We will continue to work for a minority Labour administration in order to deliver our progressive manifesto for the people of West Lothian for the next five years.”