IN a day of political fireworks, the SNP yesterday stood down as the
minority administration on Falkirk District Council six turbulent months
after taking power.
The party's decision was announced at a news conference after a full
meeting of the council ended in an opposition walkout. The SNP Provost,
Mr John Constable, later criticised it as political hooliganism.
The nationalist group said its position had been undermined by the
defection of two councillors who had resigned from the group, leaving it
with only 12 members on the 36-strong council.
The first of the resignations came soon after the party took power in
May. Councillor Robert Speirs said at the time that he was resigning
because his colleagues had refused to strike a pact with the council's
three independents to achieve an overall majority.
Mr Speirs said then: ''We will be defeated in every situation. Anyone
who thinks we won't is living in cloud cuckoo land.''
These words came back to haunt the SNP last Friday when Labour,
Independent, and Tory members opposed pay increases averaging 18% for
senior officials by 16 votes to seven.
After the vote, the second SNP defection took place when Councillor
Margaret Main said she was resigning in protest over the scale of the
awards in the current economic climate.
Yesterday, SNP group leader David Alexander laid the blame for his
party's decision to stand down firmly at the defectors' door.
He told the news conference: ''It is with great regret that I must
announce that, following the defection of two SNP members to the
Independent-Tory group that all SNP conveners and vice-conveners have
tendered their resignations.
''It is directly due to their action that we arrived at the situation
where they have facilitated the possible return to power of the party
which was so decisively rejected in their wards in May.
''I would like to pay tribute to SNP members who have remained
resolute and principled in the past six months in carrying out their
responsibilities after Labour walked away from office.''
He continued: ''The council's future is a difficult one for us all. We
will act in the best interests of people in the district at all times.''
Provost Constable said, however, that he would not be resigning:
''Yes, I am staying. I have been appointed for four years and my
position is legally unassailable.
''I feel I would be failing in my duties were I to allow this council
to fall back into the kind of dictatorial set-up which existed for four
to five years and where debate was repeatedly stifled by a Labour
administration purely in order to gag opposition and ensure the public
was not fully represented by those elected to represent them.''
The provost had earlier become embroiled in a heated row in private
session when one SNP councillor made a remark about ''two Judases''. The
provost had been asked by Mr Jim Johnston, the Independent group leader,
to instruct the councillor to withdraw the remark.
Mr Constable refused while Mr Johnston in turn refused to sit down.
The provost eventually called for a council official to eject Mr
Johnston from the council chamber which in turn led to the opposition
walkout.
Mr Constable later referred to a ''kind of political hooliganism which
has never occurred in this chamber before, political hooliganism which I
think was perhaps stage-managed''.
It is against this explosive backdrop that the full council will meet
again next Wednesday to try to plot a way out of the crisis.
Mr Frank McKeever, the leader of the 16-strong Labour group, said:
''The important feature now is that the public of Falkirk district do
not suffer.
''We will be having a meeting on Monday with our group and our
district Labour Party representatives to pave the way forward so that,
when the special meeting is called, we can put forward the necessary
nominations.
''In the cool light of day, Mr Constable must reconsider his position.
He has been the mainstay of the SNP administration. I think he has not
got one shred of credibility left.''
Asked if Labour, unlike last time round, would consider a pact with
other groups on the council, Mr McKeever said: ''We went it alone the
first time. I think we will now discuss the possibility of a pact. I
don't think that can be ruled out at this stage.''
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