By Maura Bowman and Alan Wilson

THE HUSBAND of suspended Longhaugh Primary deputy head Linda Ross last night said events surrounding her case have descended into “farce.”

Mr Vic Ross was speaking hours after Dundee City Council was granted a full interdict barring him from contacting Longhaugh head teacher Gerard Munro.

Mr Ross did not fight the court action because it would have been “a pointless but costly exercise,” he added.

Feeling that the latest turn of events is “nothing less than a complete farce,” he said, “I believe Dundee City Council have shot themselves in the foot, yet again.”

Mr Ross also demanded that the council issue a public apology to his wife for making her suspension from Longhaugh public.

He believes no action would have been taken if he had been an angry parent and said the granting of a full interdict against him at Dundee Sheriff Court yesterday suggested that “head teachers are now a protected species from irate husbands of teaching staff.”

Sheriff Tom Hughes granted the interdict and Mr Ross is now banned from approaching, speaking to or contacting Mr Munro in any way, whether by phone, writing, electronic communication or otherwise.

The council had been granted an interim interdict against Mr Ross on June 5 after he contacted Mr Munro to ask why his wife Linda had come home from work in a distressed state.

Mr Ross previously said his wife had not been able to tell him the reason for her suspension because of the terms of a confidentiality agreement she had signed with the council.

He had attempted to contact Mr Munro to clarify the situation and admitted calling his mobile phone on several occasions on June 3 —but denied it had been up to 50 times and said he only got through three times.

Mr Ross maintained his position last night, adding that Mr Munro had phoned him back twice.

The council later confir-med that Mrs Ross had been suspended from her duties at Longhaugh—just months after her high-profile suspension from Sidlaw View Primary.

At that time Mr Ross was unrepentant and said the fight to clear his and his wife’s names had started.

He maintained that the interdict was “a nonsense” and he would be taking legal steps to have it overturned.

Mr Ross was not in court to hear the verdict yesterday and later explained his change of heart.

“After discussion with my solicitor it was thought best to ignore defending the interdict as I would incur fees in lodging a notice of intention to defend,” he said.

“I have no intention of contacting Gerry Munro, now or in the future, so it would have proved to be a pointless but costly exercise.”

Nevertheless, the fight to save his wife’s career goes on and she has won the backing of teaching union the EIS.

“Recently her union had discussions with Dundee City Council education department with regard to Linda’s suspension,” Mr Ross said. “They are currently awaiting further negotiations.

“With regard to my wife’s suspension, I demand that Dundee City Council issue a public apology.

“Linda’s suspension is supposed to be a neutral action and they must have broken employee rules and union agreements by announcing this publicly as it could well prejudice the outcome of any future hearing.”

Mrs Ross was suspended from her post as deputy head of Sidlaw View last September after her husband contacted the press with allegations of violence and threats by pupils and parents.

When an independent investigation was held, the claims were found to have been exaggerated and the comments by Mr Ross were said to be a “completely inappropriate means of trying to resolve the situation.”

However, the panel did recommend that security at Sidlaw View be reviewed, to ensure that access was restricted and that staff always knew who was being allowed in.

A disciplinary hearing in February concluded Mrs Ross should not return to Sidlaw View but would stay employed by the education department at the same level of seniority.

She was then transferred to Longhaugh.