North Ayrshire’s backroom coalition was aired in full public view as the council’s SNP administration ditched their own budget motion to adopt the Tory group’s budget.
That was the sensational claim from North Ayrshire Labour following Wednesday's budget showdown.
The party said in a statement: “During a 45-minute recess, the SNP council leader walked past the Labour group room to do a backroom deal with the Conservative group to pass a council budget that cuts anti-poverty initiatives, reduces the nutritional standards of school meals and remortgages the region’s PFI schools to delay implementing the SNP government’s cuts to the council’s budget.
“Labour’s budget would have protected the council’s cost of the school day fund and maintained the Food for Life gold accreditation for the nutritional quality of school meals. Labour’s budget would have rolled out free school meals to all primary school pupils by August and deliver a pilot to start rolling out free school meals to secondary school pupils.
“An additional £1.35 million would have been invested to tackle child poverty and supplement the last Labour administration’s energy support scheme. Funding cut by the SNP administration for Labour’s internationally-acclaimed community wealth building strategy would have been reinstated. Labour’s budget would have resulted in an additional £2m to fill potholes.”
Speaking after the meeting, Labour group leader Joe Cullinane said: “What we have seen is the SNP administration moving the Tory group's budget. The SNP walked past the Labour group room and went to the Tories, offering to ditch their own budget and adopt the Tory one for their support.
“When the meeting resumed, the Tory group leader even said it was their budget that was being proposed.
“The gloomy faces on the SNP benches told its own story. In less than 12 months they have gone from saying their priorities would be tackling poverty and climate change to proposing a Tory budget proposed by Tory councillors who expressly say they oppose Labour’s plans to extend free school meals, tackle holiday hunger, deliver on community wealth building and invest in green technology.”
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