Lib Dems choose general election candidate

John Waddell is to stand for the Scottish Liberal Democrats in West Aberdeenshire & Kincardine in the General Election on 8 June. The constituency was held by Liberal Democrat Sir Robert Smith from 1997 to 2015 (pictured with John).

John (25) hails from Banchory, and works in Westhill for North East MSP Mike Rumbles as a caseworker – helping constituents and communities raise and resolve local issues.

John stood in last year’s Scottish Parliament elections for the Aberdeen South & North Kincardine constituency.

He said: “It is great honour to be nominated to stand for my home constituency. We have a tough fight on our hands but people are starting to get fed up of the SNP saying one thing and doing another. In 10 years of government they have done very little to support our local economy and communities in the North East.

“The SNP’s back and forth with the Conservatives has created even more division. The Tories have given the Nationalists all the ammunition they need for another independence referendum. We need to get back to having an MP who will stand up for everyone in the constituency and deliver for the region.

“The Liberal Democrats are the only party who are fighting to keep Scotland in the UK and the UK in the Single Market and the EU. That is what most people in West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine want to see.”

North East Scottish Liberal Democrat MSP Mike Rumbles added: “John is hard working and more than anything else cares about helping local people and our communities. We could not ask for a better representative.

“This area has a strong tradition of voting Liberal Democrat; both Sir Robert Smith and I have held the seat in Westminster and in the Scottish Parliament in recent years. John has the best chance of taking it back from the SNP who now take voters here for granted.”

Cash event at Cookney

Kincardineshire Development Partnership’s next Community Cash event will be held on Thursday 11 May at 6.45pm in Cookney Hall. They have decided to open this particular event out to groups from across the Kincardine and Mearns area. Each group gives a short presentation about their project, then participants vote for which project receives a micro-grant of up to £300.

Demand is expected to be high, so registration forms need to returned as soon as possible! Have a look at www.kincardineshiredp.org or contact me for an application form. I’d need an email address.

More road closures

Owing to BT ducting and excavation work, it will be necessary to close the C25K country road from RUM House to Hillhead at Cookney for three days from Tuesday 16 May.

Aberdeenshire Council officers add that this closure will be completed the day before the commencement of the 14 week closure on the C13K. Therefore there will be no conflicts arising with the diversion routes.

Motions dominate council meeting

A long meeting of the full Aberdeenshire Council today, dominated by three notices of motion – these are issues that individual councillors put forward for debate and where appropriate for some specific action.

I was pleased to support the first motion calling on the UK Government to reconsider the transitional state pension arrangements for women born on/after 6 April 1950. No councillor expressed any opposition to the equalisation of state pensions for men and women. The concerns centre around the late notification to those affected, long after they could make alternative arrangements, which results in unforeseen hardship. The motion was supported by 48 votes to 12. The chief executive will now write to the government.

The second motion – which was unanimously passed – calls on the chief executive to write to the Royal Bank expressing our concerns about the closures of the branches in Stonehaven, Banchory and Westhill. Will adequate alternative arrangements be put in place for customers?

The third motion stirred up passions around the chamber over the new “rape clause” affecting mothers seeking to claim child tax credits for more than two children when a child was the result of a coercive relationship or rape. After a lengthy and robust debate the motion was supported by 49 votes for 13 (all Conservative) with two “no votes”. The council will now write to the UK Government expressing grave concern and urging a reversal of the policy.

In other business, councillors agreed defer consideration of a Review of the Scheme for Establishment of Community Councils. Officers have been instructed to re-establish a short-term working group to facilitate a further six week period of consultation with community councils prior to bringing forward a report to the council to consider the outcome of the consultation.

A planning application for a regional food hall, retail, and leisure, and industrial uses at Blackdog, north of Aberdeen, was approved. This development should provide a showcase for local producers and the fishing industry.

The development of a commercial/industrial development at Balmacassie north of Ellon was also approved.

This was the final council meeting before the local government elections on Thursday 4 May.

Spotlight on Portlethen

Portlethen Community Council heard tonight from Aberdeenshire Council’s Kincardine and Mearns area manager Willie Munro about plans to draw up a town plan, “to capture everything we know about Portlethen.” One of its uses will be to prepare for the next local development plan. The community council, the local authority and Architecture and Design Scotland (http://www.ads.org.uk) will work together on the project, which will eventually be rolled out to all 26 communities across Kincardine and Mearns.

There was also a discussion on developer contributions, with Mr Munro promising to provide a report on dates and contributions for the next meeting (23 May). More than £662,000 is earmarked for a park and ride north of Hillside, however the Scottish Government has stated it is not willing to contribute to the £10m plus cost at this stage, which places the project in doubt. Unspent contributions are returned to developers.

It was agreed to give a £250 grant to Skip Hop towards the cost of sessions at the Jubilee Hall.

The Moss Preservation Group was praised for being named as the community champion at the North East Scotland Biodiversity Awards 2017.

The community council meetings in the academy are open to the public. They start at 7pm. One member of the public was present, along with an Evening Express reporter, councillors (me, Carl Nelson and Alison Evison), and one council candidate (Colin Pike). A representative of Aberdeenshire Council’s waste service is to attend the meeting on 27 June.

Fewer teachers being trained

The number of primary school teachers being trained in Scotland is to be cut, according to the Herald newspaper. Training places are expected to be reduced from 1186 in 2017/18 to 450 in 2018 /19. That is a huge reduction.
There is already a shortage of trained teachers in Aberdeenshire and recruitment is a challenge. Are we going to see even larger class sizes?
My Liberal Democrat colleague Councillor Isobel Davidson – who is our council education spokeswoman – is taking this up with the Scottish Government.

Planning blueprint now in force

Aberdeenshire Council has now formally adopted the Aberdeenshire Local Development Plan. It is effectively a blueprint for future development.
The plan sets out the policies that will be used for assessing planning applications and identifies development opportunities across Aberdeenshire.
Further information on the plan can be viewed on the council’s website: https://online.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/apps/news/release.aspx?newsid=4685

Burst pipe floods Portlethen streets

The scene today (Saturday) on Cookston Road

Scottish Water has posted that water supplies have now been restored to those customers affected at Portlethen. A major pipe burst near McIntosh Donald earlier this evening, flooding local roads and cutting off water to hundreds of houses.  The force of the water pushed up and burst the surface of the pavement so it will uneven until fixed.

Scottish Water says that as “supplies fully restore customers may experience some discolouration to their water, in order to clear this you should run just your cold kitchen tap at half pressure until the water stream runs clear. For any further assistance call us on 08000 778 778 and one of our experienced Customer Service Advisors will deal with your call as quickly as possible. Alternatively you can follow us on Facebook and Twitter.”