Edinburgh's SNP group is shutting down criticism and vandalising democracy – Iain Whyte

As usual the SNP answer was to deflect. This time it was Brexit, just like recent scrutiny of the Scottish government’s record on Covid was bounced by announcing a £500 payment for health staff and an imaginary grievance about how it would be taxed.

Things are the same in the council. An Audit Scotland report pointed out a litany of failings and an inability of the council to link the high “ambition” of its glossy strategies to delivery. It also highlighted declining public satisfaction rates with council services and staff dissatisfaction with their leadership. Even where it said basic services have improved, the report’s own data shows otherwise.

The deflection came as expected. Brexit again rather than council matters as apparently all is well with the council. The gap between strategy and delivery can be solved by “drawing a line in a document” to link up the strategies. Worst of all, the SNP rejected Conservative calls for an improvement plan despite this being a specific request of the auditors.

Add to this the SNP council leader’s obvious discomfort in having to argue the case for the city and its businesses to be placed in Covid Level 2, praising the First Minister at length in the council meeting as he quietly tried to disagree with her. The trouble is we need leadership on this and his failure to understand or marshal the facts gets in the way of making a strong case. He argues in a vacuum about moving from Level 3 when the data suggests the decision is between Level 1 and Level 2.

The truth is the SNP don’t like scrutiny of their performance at any level. Criticism and facts can’t be used to improve services if they get in the way of the popularity they crave to push their only aim, independence.

To this end, they committed an act of vandalism on our local democracy at the council meeting. Stung by public and political criticism of their bungled “Spaces for People” road closures and cycle lanes and the huge future risk and cost of trams, they want it silenced.

For the foreseeable future, they have reduced the time available for opposition members to raise concerns and question officers in council and committees. Not one but two guillotine measures will limit debate. They have also made it harder for anyone in disagreement to continue a debate to full council from committee. This is important as it lets all councillors raise local issues and is the only way independent councillors can take part.

The SNP were aided and abetted in this by their independence-supporting colleagues in the Greens and their supine Labour partners who just don’t get the way their coalition is being used to further the wider SNP project.

The chilling message seems to be that scrutiny, criticism and alternative voices are to be heard as little as possible. This is regardless of whether those voices were elected by a sizeable part of the Edinburgh public or are representing widespread public views.

Iain Whyte is Conservative group leader on Edinburgh Council

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