[Updated below 14.45] The agenda for this morning’s meeting, 3rd February, of the Bute and Cowal Area Committee in Dunoon had a motion of no confidence in local councillors, Council Leader Dick Walsh and James McQueen.
The result was as tight as it could have been, with the Deputy Chair, Cowal Councillor Alex MacNaughton, using his casting vote to protect Council Leader Dick Walsh and fellow Dunoon Councillor, James McQueen.
Astonishingly, Councillor MacNaughton was allowed to take this action despite the fact that, named himself on the motion of no confidence with Councillors Walsh and McQueen, he had an indisputable non-financial interest in the outcome.
Councillor MacNaughton was in the chair in the absence of the Chair, Robert MacIntyre from Bute, who had a conflicting appointment. This conveniently relieved Councillor Macintyre of a difficult personal situation arising from his erratic personal political affiliations since May 2012; and the fact that, in connection with this zigzagging, he directly owes his position as Area Chair to the Council Leader whom he had begged to let him keep it upon the return to power – and patronage – of Councillor Walsh in 2014.
Update 14.45: The bizarre fact about this vote is that the three councillors subject to the motion of no confidence – MacNaughton, McQueen and Walsh – were able to deliver four votes between them, with one of them in the Chair and having a casting vote. With Provist Len Scoullar’s vote in thier favour, that gave them five, against their four colleague in Bute and Cowal who supported the motion: Councillors Gordon Blair, Michael Breslin, Bruce Marshall and Isobel Strong.
