Stirling’s provost has hit out at controversy generated over an invite to visit Florida which could have cost Stirling Council up to £3000.
In Wednesday’s Observer, fellow Tory councillors said Douglas Dodds had already made his mind up not to make the trip to Dunedin, which has decades old links with Stirling, due to the cost to the taxpayer.
Bannockburn ward independent councillor Alasdair MacPherson and the opposition SNP group earlier this week slammed the proposed use of up to £3000 of public money to pay for Provost Dodds to visit Dunedin in the US state next April.
Councillor MacPherson said he was sure the public would be “disgusted” at the thought of public funds being used to fly the provost on a “free junket” along with an overnight stay in a London hotel, urging council leader Chris Kane to intervene.
Cllr MacPherson - who circulated a picture of Cllr Dodds face superimposed on a Mickey Mouse head - added: “There are families who could only dream about visiting Florida, so Kane needs to show leadership and stop it now.”
The SNP group meanwhile tabled a resolution for next week’s full council meeting prohibiting all foreign trips by the provost or councillors at this time, with Councillor Gerry McLaughlan adding: “We have communities struggling with the cost-of-living crisis, food prices increasing every month, energy bills continue at cripplingly high rates and the council having to face cuts at every level. The sight of the provost jetting off to a holiday destination in Florida at the Stirling residents’ expense, is just not a good look.”
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Costings for the trip - including flights, hotel stays and expenses - were included in papers drawn up by council officials for yesterday’s civic panel meeting.
Addressing the panel yesterday before removing himself from the discussion on the trip, Provost Dodds said: “The reason I’m not going to Dunedin is a personal choice.
“We have certain people in Stirling and amongst us who are small minded, bigoted people and as far as I’m concerned that’s one of the reasons I withdrew this application.”
Saying it was “a shame” it could mean the end of an exchange which had operated for decades and which had “built bridges”, he added: “If individuals knew the size of America, where I intended to go - and where I am not now going - is nowhere near Disneyworld.”
Officers later told the panel they were withdrawing the paper, with panel members therefore having no decision to make.
An official added: “At some stage in the future there may be further investigation into [making a visit] but I don’t think there’s an appetite to do so in the coming period.”
On Tuesday Tory group leader Councillor Neil Benny said: “Douglas has already said that he won’t be going to Florida due to the cost to the taxpayer. SNP and Labour provosts ran up huge bills visiting Dunedin in the past, but Douglas takes his role seriously and doesn’t want to run up huge costs.
“Douglas is doing a great job as provost. It is just a shame the SNP are still in the huff and not contributing to the civic life of the district. Perhaps if they did they wouldn’t make such stupid comments.”
Stirling’s link with the city of Dunedin, Florida, was established in 1964 by the then Stirling District Council. Although not twinned, Stirling is linked as a ‘sister city’ with Dunedin, through the Sister Cities International charitable organisation, whose mission is ‘to promote peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation - one individual, one community at a time’.
A number of visits have taken place over the years, both to Florida and by return to the UK. Due to Covid there was no visit to Dunedin by Stirling Council’s previous provost [Labour’s Christine Simpson]. Historically each provost has made one visit during their term of office, and has acted as chieftain of the Dunedin Highland Games.
The invitation extended to provost Dodds included a week-long programme of events including attending a baseball game, landmark tour, reception/dinner and Highland Games parade, with costs other than meals outwith the events covered by the hosts.
The report scheduled for yesterday’s meeting said: “The civic panel is asked to consider: authorising a visit by the provost to Dunedin, Florida; approving allocation of up to £3000 from the civic budget for the purposes of this visit.”
Detailing the costs, the report added: “The council would require to meet the cost of the flight to Florida. At the time of writing this report the flight from Edinburgh to London and then London to Florida is estimated to be around £1700. Due to flight times, it is likely that overnight accommodation would be required in London and this is forecast to cost around £200.”
The report had also asked councillors to take into account costs of around £2000 involved in then inviting the mayor of Dunedin to visit Stirling in a future year, although this sum would have come from a future financial year’s budget.
Dunedin’s mayor last visited Stirling in 2019 when former Stirling provost Colin O’Brien, who visited Dunedin on Stirling’s behalf in 2005, said: “This has been an enduring partnership, largely to Stirling’s benefit judging by the number of visitors who deliberately include a visit here to see their ‘sister city’.”
