A call by Conservative councillors to send a letter of congratulation to Boris Johnson for his handling of the Covid pandemic was shot down in a meeting of West Lothian Council this week.
The minority Labour group joined forces with the SNP opposition to back a motion from the nationalists seeking guarantees to preserve free Lateral Flow Tests.
The council, which is facing £12m of budget cuts to local services, spent almost an hour arguing whether it should write to the Prime Minister, or First Minister Nicola Sturgeon on issues of Lateral Flow Tests and independence votes.
A motion from SNP group leader Janet Campbell praised the SNP government “for taking the bold steps required to tackle the threats posed to our population by the Covid- 19 pandemic.”
The motion added that the group was “shocked and appalled” that the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson as reported by a Downing Street source is considering discontinuing free Lateral Flow Test” and called for “absolute opposition to these plans.”
The motion was seconded by Bathgate’s Labour Councillor Harry Cartmill. He responded to Tory critics by saying: “ The whole point here is that this is not about the constitution in any shape or form. The constitution is a separate issue. This is about safeguarding public health.”
The council is led by Labour working in a loose coalition with the Conservatives, while the SNP is the largest single party in the current council. And the debate showed the choppy waters ahead for all as the country and county emerges from the pandemic and sails towards local elections in May.
Tory group leader Damian Doran-Timson said the Westminster government had spent an eye-watering £372bn on measures to cope with the Covid pandemic.
He criticised the SNP and Labour for scaremongering tactics “to score a political point”. He added that it would be July this year before any decisions were made, and only then if certain data sets were met.
He accused the SNP government at Holyrood of hindering businesses and damaging the government just to be different from the UK.
The Conservatives’ amendment added: “West Lothian Council agrees to write to the Prime Minister Boris Johnston and the UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid congratulating them on the UKs response to the pandemic.
“Furthermore, Council agrees to write to the First Minister of Scotland to express the Council’s dismay that her priority is another damaging independence referendum and the First Minister should announce no such referendum will be called for in this administration term of Holyrood.”
Councillor Frank Anderson, depute SNP group leader, said the Johnson government had to be forced to recognised scientific evidence.
He added: “It wasn’t the SNP or Labour who put out about Lateral Flow Tests, it was the Tories.”
Councillor Anderson accused the Prime Minister and others of rubbing people’s noses in the mud with the parties in Downing Street and accused local Conservatives of spending more time talking about an independence referendum than about policies.
Depute Labour group leader Councillor Kirsteen Sullivan said she was weary that a serious public health issue had again become a debate about the constitution.
She said: “It is possible to be against independence and in favour of free lateral flow tests.”
Councillor Sullivan added that Lateral Flow Tests remained vital to managing the pandemic. “Please focus on substantive issues and not go back to the constitutional merry go round. The issue under consideration here is the lateral flow test.”
The SNP’s Andrew Miller agreed, describing the Conservative amendment as a “deflection”. Livingston colleague Councillor Maria MacAulay said the tests had proved a “godsend”, and should be retained free of charge.
However Angela Doran -Timson for the Conservatives said the council should recognise the benefits that Scotland had had by being part of the UK. She added that she was “disappointed but not surprised” that Labour was not behind taking independence off the table.
Councillor Charles Kennedy said he was astonished that his Bathgate colleague, Councillor Cartmill, denied that the constitution was part of the debate when it was mentioned in the opening lines of the SNP motion, praising the Scottish Government adding: “ In supporting this motion Councillor Cartmill is supporting independence.”
In a vote a combined SNP Labour group voted 25 to 8 for the motion against the Conservative amendment
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