Aberdeen City Council’s furious opposition leader has hit out at council chiefs accusing them of using “project fear” tactics to blame the Scottish Government for council cuts.
On Monday, leader of the Labour-led administration Jenny Laing wrote in the Press and Journal that ministers had repeatedly ignored their requests to help find a solution to their financial woes.
She said there was “continuing uncertainty” over local authority budgets adding: “The Scottish Government hasn’t just been silent on this issue. Ministers have actually ignored our efforts to work together to mitigate the impact on people.”
But SNP leader councillor Jackie Dunbar has hit back saying the blame for any cuts comes from Westminster’s “austerity agenda”.
She said: “Councillor Laing’s scare mongering is straight out of the Project Fear handbook and she is continuing to cover for the Tory Government’s cuts to the Scottish budget, now we see that they are willing to say and do anything to move the blame onto the Scottish Government when quite clearly we are about to see George Osbourne’s cuts.”
But Ms Laing accused the SNP group of “slavish devotion” to Holyrood.
She said: “Councillor Dunbar really needs to stop her slavish devotion to the SNP Scottish Government and stand shoulder to shoulder with the administration to ensure Aberdeen gets the best possible deal from the Scottish Government.
“For too long Aberdeen has been treated as a cash cow by the Scottish Government and like many Aberdonians, I believe we deserve better.”