MORAY’S COUNCIL CHIEF did not get his long awaited day with a Scottish Government minister who was ‘too busy’ to discuss the financial crisis facing the region.
Council leader Stewart Cree was expected to meet with Derek Mackay MSP on Wednesday to discuss the plight of Moray and all Councils – however, on the eve of the meeting he was informed that the minister would be too busy in the Parliament chamber and called off the meeting.
“It is a wee bit frustrating that the meeting had to be cancelled but I understand how busy government ministers must be,” a disappointed Councillor Cree said, adding: “I am anxious to see Mr Mackay as soon as possible so that he is given prior warning of the situation which local authorities are facing prior to next year’s budget.”
Moray Council are currently using Social Media to consult with the public over some of the measures being considered to slash their budget by around £14million and avoid the bankruptcy being predicted in some quarters. These have included Council spending on school crossing attendants, CCTV monitoring and Community Wardens.
Councillor Cree now hopes that a new date can be arranged for the meeting, saying: “We want to make the finance minister unequivocally aware of what the outcome will be if we cannot find some means of increasing our budgets.”
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