Angus Council’s former deputy leader has made a shock return to the administration — just four months after walking out.
Arbroath independent councillor David Fairweather resigned in September over what he described as the “bungled handling of the recycling centres issue”.
Mr Fairweather previously turned his back on the coalition administration after suggesting the multi-party group had “fallen at the first hurdle” in its running of the cash-strapped council.
He has now performed a u-turn following an approach by former colleagues after months of what The Courier understands were a number of protracted behind the scenes discussions.
Mr Fairweather sounded a warning on his return that there was “no room for laissez-faire attitudes or sticking heads in the sand” as he spoke of the “significant challenges” ahead.
He said: “My return to the administration is the result of an approach by former colleagues.
“Over the past couple of months, I have held in-depth discussions about the significant challenges that Angus Council, in fact every Scottish council, faces.
“With this in mind, I have made it clear that decisive and strong leadership is essential during this time of relentless austerity.
“In the early days of the new council, and against a backdrop of unprecedented cuts to services, it was disheartening and frustrating to encounter some deeply unrealistic expectations about what the council can do with little money and dwindling financial reserves.
“There can be no room for laissez faire attitudes or sticking heads in the sand hoping it will be ‘alright on the night’.
“And any mad-cap pursuit of sound bites and headlines can ultimately give a misleading impression about the fiscal situation we as a council continue to face.
“I believe that enough time has passed since the election for the reality of our position to sink in, and this is one of the reasons I have opted, following a unanimous vote by my former colleagues, to rejoin the administration.”
Mr Fairweather said his principal reason for returning was that he wants to do “everything possible to protect the services my constituents, and residents right across Angus, rely on”.
He added: “We have incredibly difficult decisions to make, and we must be pragmatic and realistic about making them if we are to maximise the scale and quality of the services we deliver.”
It is understood Mr Fairweather will take up a role on the administration’s “management team”.
SNP group leader Lynne Devine said “absolute surprise” was her first reaction as she said Mr Fairweather appeared to have been “disenchanted with the administration as a whole”.
She said: “It’s interesting that the issue he resigned over in the first place – recycling – has not been solved.
“We don’t know who has asked him to return.”
She said it was proof that by voting Independent the public “don’t know what you are getting or how consistent the message will be”.
