SNP's extraordinary Balmossie fire station rift revealed
Proposals to downgrade Balmossie fire station in Broughty Ferry caused an extraordinary rift within the SNP, it has emerged.
Politicians, including Mr Hosie and Mr Guild, during a 'Save Balmossie' parade in Broughty Ferry in March.
- By Geraldine McKelvie
- Published in the Courier : 16.07.10
- Published online : 16.07.10 @ 10.02am
Correspondence between the convener of Tayside Fire and Rescue Board Ken Lyall and party colleagues including John Swinney, Dundee East MP Stewart Hosie and Dundee City Council leader Ken Guild details the animosity between the men, which led to Mr Lyall being temporarily suspended from the party earlier this year.
Mr Lyall, an SNP councillor for Highland Perthshire, broke party ranks to champion a consultation that would see full night cover at Balmossie -- the quietest whole-time station in Tayside -- removed in order to provide a day shift at a busier station in Forfar.
The proposal was eventually narrowly defeated at a meeting of Tayside Fire and Rescue Board in Perth at the end of March.
The documents, released to The Courier under freedom of information legislation, reveal Mr Lyall's belief that party opposition to the consultation was on the grounds of increasing Mr Hosie's popularity with the electorate, rather than protecting the interests of the people of Broughty Ferry and Monifieth.
In an email to Mr Guild, dated January 7, Mr Lyall writes, "I have given my all for this party and in return only been kicked in the face. I will not be bullied on this topic and if the truth about it has to come out in the public domain then so be it. I will be able to hold my head high, unlike others!"
Mr Lyall adds, "If Hosie is so afraid of losing the election this year maybe he should have wound his neck in a bit (regarding) Balmossie."
The information supplied to The Courier indicates that Mr Guild did not reply to this email.
However, in earlier correspondence from the same day he tells Mr Lyall that he is "very disappointed at the timing of this controversial proposal in a key sector of a marginal seat."
Nonetheless he also rejects earlier allegations by Mr Lyall that he had been "pressurised" into his stance on Balmossie by Mr Hosie.
As early as November Mr Lyall contacted Mr Swinney to say that Mr Hosie would "significantly undermine" both Mr Lyall's position within Perth and Kinross Council and Mr Swinney's in the Scottish Parliament if he opposed the Balmossie proposals.
He wrote, "I know you have me down as a pain in the a*** and maybe not loyal to the party... but (Mr Hosie) needs to be spoken to.
"How the hell can I support keeping frontline services and firefighters in jobs when he wants to keep open a station which is not only the quietest in Tayside but one of the quietest retained station (sic) in Tayside open and in full time work?
"Forfar is just as busy but is full time retained, what about the lives lost there due to this present service? It is madness in the extreme and blatant politics ... We have to appear as one party.
Danger
"The last thing I want is to be part of a party which is just as bad as the Liberals -- one policy for every different street. That is the danger here."
In another email to Mr Swinney Mr Lyall calls Mr Hosie and Angus councillor Helen Oswald "a joke" and "bitter and twisted."
The Courier also accessed emails from Mr Lyall to chief fire officer Stephen Hunter.
In one, dated January 28, he tells Mr Hunter that he has had "a very angry John Swinney on the phone" regarding comments made in the press about Balmossie which were critical of Dundee City Council.
When contacted by The Courier on Thursday, Mr Hosie said he was not aware of any instances of bullying in the party and did not want to comment on that matter further.
However, he added, "I'm not aware that anyone in the SNP opposed the consultation for any other reason than the protection of the safety of the people of Broughty Ferry and Monifieth.
"Unfortunately there were some heated exchanges during the debates on Balmossie, but I was delighted with the outcome of the vote and all's well that ends well as far as I'm concerned."
Mr Lyall said he stood by his decision to support the downgrading of Balmossie and added, "I just don't see how we can justify keeping it as a full-time station when we have to make these kinds of cuts."
* The Courier accepts that an allegation of bullying made against Mr Swinney in an earlier version of this report was unfounded and we wish to apologise.
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