A political row over the future of council funding in West Lothian has seen the SNP accused of refusing to acknowledge the dire financial situation they face - as they said opponents were ignoring “inconvenient truths” about increased spending on Scottish councils and in health and social care.
The debate came on the back of a budget round-up provided by head of Finance Donald Forrest. The detailed paper provided budget options for decisions councillors will need to make next month.
Core funding for the council will increase but so will the element of ring fencing of this money. The increases are also being eaten away by surging inflation.
READ MORE: West Lothian budget deficit grows by £10m in just four months
Council leader Lawrence Fitzpatrick, chairing the meeting, described it as the "most worrying depressing time" he had known in many years in local government.
Council Robert De Bold for the SNP tabled an amendment to the paper regretting the “continued imposition of Westminster austerity and the subsequent budgetary pressures for the Scottish Government and Scottish local authorities".
His amendment said: “…Scottish Government has protected and significantly increased Health and Social Care funding and social Justice, Housing and Local Government funding”
He added that the local government settlement represented a total cash increase of £570m.”
Council Fitzpatrick said that when it came to protecting communities the local SNP group was out of step with party colleagues in councils across Scotland.
He said: “I signed off a letter with 31 other leaders of Scottish local authorities to the First Minister about the dreadful financial state that all councils are in.”
He said COSLA had asked for £1.1bn: “to help us stand still. We were given £550m but when all the ring fencing is accounted for they actually gave £38m - between 32 councils.”
He added: "Please stand together with all parties. It's about survival of jobs in this council, it's about the survival of jobs in local contractors. We must stand up and say we are councillors and we stand solidly together for our community in West Lothian.”
Depute Labour and council leader Kirsteen Sullivan said the ring fencing of finances meant that local councils are expected to act as a vehicle for SNP election promises, while being starved of funds to provide the day to day services communities rely on.
She added : “I’m flummoxed why the SNP group in this council thinks they are right. Everyone else seems really concerned. We have got independent think tanks, independent economists and we have even got the SNP standing up for their communities, yet the ones in this chamber refuse to do so."
She pointed to neighbouring Falkirk Council where the SNP councillors had to look to sell council buildings and added: “ It’s time to take off the rose tinted glasses and look at the stark reality of the crises faced in local communities and for the Scottish Government to get its priorities right and start treating councils with the respect and dignity they deserve.”
Conservative group leader Councillor Damian Doran-Timson criticised “SNP spin” and pointed to the £600,000 discrepancy in party finances. “They can’t manage their own finances, never mind the country. Let’s deal with facts, not SNP spin.”
Councillor De Bold’s amendment was defeated 10-3.
After the meeting Councillor De Bold told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: “It was apparent that the budget update paper by the Labour Administration attempted to gloss over the £15.2 million ring-fenced funding provided by the Scottish Government and the £1.1 billion funding increase and protection given to the Scottish NHS and social care.
"These are inconvenient truths to them and they only wish to focus on discretionary funding under their control. When commenting, Labour councillors even tried to downplay this additional funding principally because it was ring fenced despite the fact that the majority of the ring fenced funding provided for the pay award to local council employees.
"This begs the question, if they objected to this funding being ring fenced, what did they want to spend the money on if not the pay award?"
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