In light of recent events, it feels a lot like Aberdeen City Council cares more about its own interests than the will of the people, writes Rebecca Buchan.
“Stop, look, listen and think” is a slogan I assumed everyone was well-versed in.
Devised as a guide to help children cross the road safely, it’s a phrase we all had drummed into us as kids.
And it’s something I thought folk intuitively implemented in many a scenario where care should be taken. But, it would seem it has completely escaped the minds of Aberdeen City Council’s administration, now they’re all grown up.
Either that, or they didn’t get the memo about just how much care should go into deciding this year’s budget.
I know they’re not quite a year into the job yet, so maybe I need to cut them some slack, but the results of last month’s full council meeting were nothing short of an omnishambles.
No one was in any doubt that hard decisions were going to have to be made. A £46 million black hole needed to be filled during a cost-of-living crisis, and council officers had warned that it was more important than ever to save money.
But the uproar from the local and business community since the SNP-Lib Dem partnership announced their slew of cuts has been extraordinary within the city. Multiple protests, petitions and national political intervention, followed by letters of concern from major bodies like the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals in Scotland is just the start.
The local population is seething. People feel betrayed – and quite rightly so.
We elect members to represent us; to act as our voice. So, why does it feel like we’ve had a budget enforced upon us because it suits them?
Do spending decisions really benefit residents?
Massive burdens were placed on West End business owners, who now have just a matter of weeks to conjure up cash to pay newly imposed rates on empty listed properties.
Swimming pools and libraries (which double up as warm banks) are facing closure, and projects like Big Noise were axed (before the government intervened, at least). These changes could leave Aberdeen with the lowest number of library branches per population in the whole of Scotland.
Parking permits for those living in certain parts of the city will also increase to a staggering £200 a year.
Yet, Gaelic at select schools in Aberdeen – an SNP-backed policy – will remain, at the cost of £177,000, as Nationalist councillors set the agenda.
Is this really a case of “every penny is being spent to residents’ benefit”, as finance convener Alex McLellan said, or simply kowtowing to his Holyrood superiors?
As part of the budget, a charity aimed at creating a new community centre has been handed £250,000. This charity just happens to have councillor Martin Greig as a trustee and council co-leader Ian Yuill as an associate member.
Just how many people will benefit from these limited initiatives in comparison to the number of people who will suffer at the hands of the cuts?
Distraught Bucksburn locals have been told their swimming pool will shut, leaving vulnerable people without the use of a highly valued facility. It is understood that it would cost £400,000 to repair the pool’s ageing machinery – less than the new community centre and the Gaelic tuition combined.
Council leaders, remember the basics
Now, far be it from me to tell the council what to spend its money on. I am merely using these examples as an illustration of areas where little scrutiny appears to have been applied.
But it does feel like the administration cares more about its own interests than the will of the people. Either that, or councillors are so out of tune with what their constituents want that they thought this budget would be popular.
So, here is my message to the partnership: let me help with my easy guide to delivering the people what they want in future. We have a few more years to go with you in power yet, so it’s not too late to refresh your memory of the basics.
Stop. Take stock of what the people care about, and pause before you make any rash decisions.
Look. Observe the people around you. Those people who are gathering in groups with placards are trying to tell you something. Observe the success of the initiatives in the community, and see how they are making a difference in people’s lives.
Listen. People are trying to tell you things. Twice now, the business community has reached out in an attempt to talk to you about issues including the benefits of pedestrianising Union Street and the harm in imposing new rates on vacant listed buildings – but their requests have fallen on deaf ears. Don’t let there be a third time.
And think. Your elected status does not mean you’re inherently right. You have a duty to the people, to be OUR voice, and you were entrusted to make decisions on our behalf, not to push through your own agenda.
Rebecca Buchan is City and Shire Team Leader for The Press and Journal and Evening Express
Conversation