Community councils ‘left with no national voice’
A CAITHNESS community councillor has hit out at a 40 per cent funding cut which will result in the demise of the Association of Scottish Community Councils.
Bert Macleod, the vice-chairman of Thurso Community Council and the Highlands and Islands representative on the association, described the situation as "disappointing".
Speaking at last Tuesday night’s meeting of Thurso Community Council, Mr Macleod told his colleagues Scottish finance secretary John Swinney has decided to cut the body’s funding by 40 per cent from next April.
"The rug has been pulled from under us. It seems the SNP Government does not want the association to continue. It will run until April next year but will then be finished," said Mr MacLeod.
Commenting on the decision, association vice-chairman Bob Kerr said: "The trustees of the charity were left with no choice. Mr Swinney cut our budget almost in half while other organisations supported by Scottish Government grants saw an average cut of around four per cent, ours was cut by 10 times as much."
He pointed out the ASCC has represented and supported community councils since 1994 and has depended on government funding to do its job. "Mr Swinney clearly has an agenda here and it is not to support the community councils of Scotland. This wanton destruction of a charity that promotes local democracy should shame the Scottish Government, the more so since it is a direct contradiction of SNP party policy.
"Community councils in Scotland are now to be left with no national voice, which will make them all the easier to marginalise," said Mr Kerr.
The charity will now be wound up by the end of the financial year to give community councils which receive insurance cover through the ASCC the time to find other providers.
Mr Kerr said the finance secretary reduced the grant to £40,0O0 and set conditions on how it is spent that make it impossible for the charity to fulfil its governance obligations.
A Scottish Government spokesman said it was disappointed the association decided to fold but argued its financial allocation was realistic in the present economic climate.