Question marks still hang over Angus common good fund, despite assurance
An assurance that Angus will not have a single common good fund has failed to quell concerns over Arbroath Library's future.
Arbroath Library.
- By Graham Brown
- Published in the Courier : 01.09.11
- Published online : 01.09.11 @ 06.29pm
After a call from Angus Council finance spokesman Mark Salmond for people to wait and see what the outcome of a funds review will be, the councillor who sparked the row has said he will not be giving up the fight.
Independent Bob Spink said: "It is good to have the reassurance from Councillor Salmond that a single common good fund for the Angus burghs is not being considered and this is an unnecessary statement for I agree with him that that is not the case at the moment, and surely absolute uproar across the county would ensue if this were to be so."
But Mr Spink said he remains concerned that a report will still come before the council later this month recommending the removal of Arbroath Library from the common good fund of Arbroath to the benefit of the council general fund, claiming it should never have been there in the first place.
He said: "If this is indeed so then it means the council has been paying rent for more the 50 years on their own property, so who is responsible for that and why was it never picked up at audit?"
"I am completely focused on this issue alone at the moment and no amount of deliberation or consultation will convince me that this proposal is justified since the library was without any doubt a gift to the people of Arbroath by David Corsar in much the same way as the Webster Memorial Theatre was gifted by the Webster family, thus a common good asset."
He added: "The effect of losing the Arbroath Library would be a capital asset loss to the Arbroath common good of nearly £900,000 and a revenue loss of about £25,000 per annum — a quarter of the fund's total revenue.
"I now wait to see the words brought forward by the director in his report to come to full council before deciding the best way forward for me.
"Councillor Salmond may use his soft words but beware the thin end of the wedge and let the public decide whether a threat exists or not."
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