SNP parliamentarians have agreed to help Argyll and Bute Council to lobby for extra funding in a bid to avoid huge budget cuts.
Both sides said that a meeting today had been ‘positive’, although divisions clearly remain over the proposed £18m cutbacks.
MP Brendan O’Hara and MSP Mike Russell were among those meeting the council’s chief executive Sally Loudon, leader Dick Walsh (Independent), Lib Dem Ellen Morton and Conservative Gary Mulvaney.
Afterwards a council statement said there had been ‘a positive agreement to work together on an approach to resolving the funding gap’.
And Mr O’Hara said: “This was in the end a positive meeting, and though the SNP remains firmly opposed to what is taking place in Kilmory, we do recognise that the council needs some degree of extra assistance, given some of the particular problems it is facing including depopulation.
“We will be doing our best to help the council administration express these problems clearly to government.”
The SNP delegation stressed though that they remained opposed to the proposed cots, which would harm some of the most vulnerable people in Argyll and Bute, adding that the problem of depopulation had not been addressed and there had been a lack of financial planning.
Cllr Walsh welcomed the national politicians’ commitment “to work together on making a strong case for additional support”.
He added: “Our discussions were very helpful and constructive and, most importantly, concluded with all of us agreeing that there are key areas where we can work together to secure the best possible outcome for Argyll and Bute.
“Of course there remain areas where we agree to disagree – but the most important outcome from today is that we are absolutely in agreement about what we can and will do together.”
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