Councillor makes 'gagging order' claim over education questions
Highland Council has been accused of attempting to stifle members’ concerns – an allegation that was strongly denied – after a stormy online meeting of the education committee.
With the committee due to consider major policies on the return of schools in August, chairman John Finalyson sought to expedite debate by having questions emailed in before the meeting.
It emerged that Councillor Finlayson was encouraging members not to ask questions if they felt they had already been answered.
Councillor Andrew Baxter, who had earlier in the day been ejected from the independent group, labelled the move a “gagging order” but was reassured that anyone could ask what they chose.
However, the recently appointed interim executive chief officer for education Paul Senior reignited the argument after proposing answering questions outwith the committee, sparking five points of order in quick succession.
Mr Senior said: “We do appreciate and welcome questions the scrutiny from our council colleagues and I am sure when the time is appropriate the chairman will allow for the appropriate questioning.
“This committee is not the place to respond on individual settings, or individual cases, or individual issues so for those members who have asked such questions I would intend to arrange a response to you from our area teams who would be best placed to do so.”
Councillor Baxter interjected on a point of order, saying: “We have heard the most scandalous statement from the new head of education.
“This committee is exactly the place and the forum where our constituents expect us to ask questions and, if need be, about specific circumstances in specific schools – that is our role as elected councillors.
“And to be told yet again, at the education committee today and by email, and at my own Lochaber area committee on Monday, and now by this particular officer that we should not ask questions of that sort is unacceptable.
“As I said previously, we are effectively being gagged if the questions we ask are not the liking of officers or this rotten administration.”
Speaking afterwards, Councillor Finlayson defended the practice, saying it was never intended to muffle councillors but simply “get things moving” given the fragile connectivity with the public webcast which collapsed during the meeting.
He said: “What we decided because of the nature of the virtual meetings is we asked any members who wanted to submit any questions if they wanted to do so.
“There was never the inference that they couldn’t answer the same question again if they wanted – so when I did my introduction I said that we appreciate some members put in questions beforehand.
“Some members had their questions answered beforehand, some got direct responses and others would be answered as part of the introduction by Paul Senior.”
He added that this was Mr Senior’s first committee meeting with the council so he perhaps was not fully aware of how the question and answers would be run through the chairman first.