Administration councillor defends budget decision

Just before power changed hands by a cut of cards, the previous TALIG coalition had passed a budget upping council tax by 10 per cent.

It drew ire from the then opposition group of SNP councillors, plus Argyll and Bute’s SNP MSP Jenni Minto and SNP MP Brendan O’Hara, who all expressed “anger and disappointment” at the “political and avoidable” decision, which would “severely impact” households.

Ms Minto called TALIG’s “whopping” 10 per cent rise – which rejected the then First Minister Humza Yousaf’s “fully funded” council tax freeze – “infuriating”.

Mr O’Hara added: “This eye-watering 10 per cent Tory/LibDem council tax hike is a real kick in the teeth for the people of Argyll and Bute.”

Speaking to the Courier this week, Councillor Armour said: “The council administration, of which I am part, did not want to have such a large rise and I fully understand why many are not happy, but it has been obvious from advice from officers at budget seminars that I have attended since late last summer that it was likely that a double figure percentage increase was probable and I said that publicly whenever asked.

“However, thanks to a larger grant than expected from the Scottish Government and the hard work of administration councillors, especially leader Jim Lynch and deputy leader Ross Moreland, we managed to get it below what was first feared.

“We could have left it lower than the final figure but that would have meant cuts to local services, loss of jobs, which would have had a serious impact on our community, and no investment in the roads network. 

“So, with extra funding for the health service, a record investment in the capital roads programme, funding to support leisure service amongst others, about 2.7 per cent of the council tax increase equates to the funding councils need to find in order to cover employer National Insurance contributions, a decision made by the UK Government without providing the funding that cash-strapped councils – and even charities – need in order to cope with such a significant pressure.”

He added: “It is easy to be on the outside of the decision-making and criticise, and after 10 years in opposition I know that more than anyone and have been one of those critics in the past and made popular statements that are received well with the public. 

“But I am now in a position to be on the other side of the coin in administration and I’m fully aware that not all decisions that are made will be popular but these decisions need to be made and I am happy to defend what was in our budget.”