NORTH Ayrshire Council’s new Labour administration has come in for its first real barrage of criticism after the SNP claimed they boycotted an awards ceremony in Northern Ireland. 

But Council Leader Joe Cullinane has hit out at the claims and said the SNP have an “astonishing lack of self awareness”.

Over the past two years, the previous SNP administration were lambasted by Labour and Independent Councillors over the amount of money spent on award nominations and ceremonies.

Cllr Tony Gurney said: “Since the SNP took power in North Ayrshire we have had unprecedented success in turning around what was a failing council under Labour. It seems clear that the new administration would rather not be reminded of that success. While the withdrawal of the invitations to attend the award ceremony was not unexpected it speaks to a pettiness of thought in the new administration.

“What is unforgivable, however, is the confirmation that the change in plans at such a late stage not only did not save the council any money it actually cost more. The net cost of £94 is not a lot but it says much more that the new administration prioritises settling political scores over good financial management. This does not bode well for the budget proposals that we expect to receive within the next few weeks.

“Council tax payers can be sure that the SNP opposition will continue to scrutinise Labour and vigorously oppose wastefulness wherever we find it.”

Labour’s Joe Cullinane called this an attack on his party and responded to the SNP , saying: “Even by Tony Gurney’s standards this is a new level of embarrassing.

“First of all it was Cllr Gurney’s name on the original documents - if he hadn’t resigned he would have been in Derry last week. The combined cost to the council of him and his leader signing up to do so was £498.

“Secondly, and more importantly, I wasn’t at the awards because I decided to attend the Kilwinning Academy senior prizegiving instead. 

“My Deputy, John Bell, didn’t attend because he attended the Garnock Valley Locality Planning meeting. We literally put our community before a night out in Derry and Cllr Gurney is trying to attack us for that, which is quite astonishing.

“Not only that but, if we deal in facts, then my first ‘act’ as Council Leader was to reduce the number of ‘senior’ councillors, a decision that has saved the council thousands of pounds in councillor salaries. My second was to give the SNP Group Leader, who was forced to resign by his group whilst he was on holiday, the £9000 paid position on the health board. The whole premise of Tony’s attack is flawed and doesn’t bode well for the SNP, who are riven with divisions and splits locally over their councillors’ actions, being an effective opposition.”

“What Tony Gurney’s statement does prove however is that for the SNP donning a fancy suit, and often a bow tie, at these glitzy events was a priority. They splurged thousands of pounds of council tax payers money on attending them.

“With the new Labour administration our priority, when it comes to awards, will be securing recognition for our hardworking staff. It is they who should enjoy the rewards of their work, not councillors. We have instructed Executive Directors to restrict the number of awards they apply for, cutting down the expensive trips to award ceremonies, in order to focus on those awards that give most back to our staff and the council in general.”

A North Ayrshire Council spokesperson said: “North Ayrshire Council was awarded for its innovation and demand management at this year’s APSE Service Awards.

The Council won the ‘Best Innovation and Demand Management Initiative’ award for its interactive school meals menu.

It was also shortlisted for another seven awards including the coveted ‘Overall Council of the Year’ award. Only seven organisations were shortlisted for the award from across the UK and this is the third year in succession that the council has appeared on that shortlist.

The judges were clearly impressed with the council’s pioneering interactive menu which comes in the form of a learning and fun cooking app that can be viewed any time, anywhere beyond the classroom.

It shows short ‘how-to’ videos featuring a school cook and a pupil preparing nutritious meals, each of which feature on school menus. The straight forward nature of the videos makes each recipe easy to follow and teaches those watching the most simple way to do it.

Council leader, Joe Cullinane, was delighted with the award. He said: “I congratulate the Facilities Management team and all the other shortlisted staff whose efforts have been recognised at this prestigious event. Winning awards is a great way of reinforcing the invaluable role they play in delivering excellent services to our communities.

“The council’s vision is ‘to be a leading organisation defined by excellent and innovative services’. Having a culture of innovation is key to achieving this vision and to the successful future of the council. 

“Being part of the awards’ process is a real boost to staff and lets our communities know that those behind the services are continually striving to deliver the very best for them.”

Chief Executive, Elma Murray, is equally delighted with the award. She said: “Our staff are constantly innovating to raise the bar of excellence and their endeavours will now be shared across other local authorities as their starting point for improvement. This alone will help reaffirm the council’s place on the map of public service excellence.

“Being shortlisted for no less than eight awards is a fantastic achievement and testament to the hard work and creativity of our entire workforce. They give 100% every day and to win an award and make the finals is an important motivator for continuous improvement.”