Less than a year after being elected as an SNP councillor Ewan Smith quit the administration over a row over a school merger.
He claimed that the party was at odds with his stance against the replacement of Muirfield and Timmergreens primaries in Arbroath with an amalgamated school at Hospitalfield.
The move in February 2013 meant that SNP lost its majority in the council but remained in charge.
Mr Smith continued as an independent, but is not standing for re-election.
The other three councillors in the ward are standing again – David Fairweather (Independent), Provost Alex King (SNP) and David Lumgair (Conservative).
The ward now include Friockheim and Colliston and this has led to the SNP’s Donald Morrison, who has served in the Arbroath East and Lunan ward, moving to the expanded ward.
The other contender is Richard Moore of the Liberal Democrats. The five, all male, candidates are competing for four council seats.
The new Timmergreens Primary School opened last year but this led to criticism that it wasn’t big enough as on the first day of the school year it was already operating at over capacity.
Muirfield Primary is also going to be replaced with a new school.
Angus Council has supported the development of Friockhub community hub in Friockheim which is being developed in the old Eastgate School.
The asset transfer of the building was agreed with Angus Council last year and the steering group has successfully raised more than £1m in funding for the redevelopment of the building.
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Candidate profiles
The Courier invited each candidate to submit a short introduction to themselves and, if they wished, a video explaining why they deserve your vote.
David Fairweather (independent)
Serving the last 10 years as a councillor who believes that local councils should be answerable to local people without political interference, I see no reason to elect councillors who have to vote by political party lines even when they individually oppose that party objective.
In council I have opposed the green bin charge and also fought and protected school music instrument tuition.
Positives include the Arbroath Skatepark delivered and the prospect of an all weather athletic track now more than a possibility.
My committee membership is one of the largest within Angus Council.
I hope in the last 10 years I have shown my commitment and ask constituents from Arbroath West, Letham and Friockheim ward for their continued support.
Alex King (SNP)
I am a long serving, experienced councillor, who has used his professional skills as a chartered management accountant to good use in the council over many years.
Until very recently, I was either the council’s finance convener or the SNP finance spokesman.
In that role, I was the driving force behind the ten year plan for the Arbroath Schools Project, which will see the rebuild or refurbishment of all the Primary Schools in Arbroath.
Two primary schools have been already been replaced and plans are well developed for the rebuild of a further four primary schools.
I am standing for re-election to see the Arbroath Schools Project through to completion.
David Lumgair (Conservative)
This is the fifth local election I have been involved in.
I have been delighted to have served as a local councillor for over 18 years.
I have been actively involved in the area all of my life. I work in the family farm business and for over 35 years have been an elder of Letham church.
Although I am a staunch member of the Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party, I will try to keep politics out of decision making.
I am determined to fight for what is right for the local area and I maintain my policy of listening to your views and concerns and I will always be readily available for consultations.
I very much hope that with your support I will have the privilege of continuing to represent you.
I pledge to work hard on your behalf to ensure that Arbroath West, Letham & Friockheim remains an excellent place to live.
Richard Moore (Lib Dem)
I’m a Yorkshireman by birth and a Scottish resident by choice.
In my professional life I’m an accounting technician. I also gained a wide knowledge of planning and licensing as a local councillor.
I’m a committed advocate of environmental protection and recycling.
We all share the same environment and we have a duty to leave a healthy planet for future generations.
Since I moved to Angus in 2011, I’ve noticed there’s sometimes a need for challenge in the way the area is served.
We need to examine how all council services are delivered, from social care to waste collection.
We must look for local ideas to make services more effective, and improve them wherever possible.
Donald Morrison (SNP)
Since first elected in 2007, I have always been fully accessible, putting the community first by supporting individuals, voluntary groups, while working with all councillors.
Over the last five years, as convenor of communities, I am proud to have seen a new social housing building programme in place with improvements to the existing housing stock and more in the pipeline.
I worked with Voluntary Action Angus in setting up Care About Angus (CAA), a non-profit social enterprise, which retained tenancy support workers in sheltered housing complexes and also the home help service.
CAA has been a huge success in the first year with plans to expand further into the community.
It is a huge privilege to serve Arbroath, villages and outlying areas and I wish to continue helping communities empower themselves, take pride in their place and increase the number of community led groups and local social enterprises.
