Just a day after his brief statement in the Commons ended the RAF’s century-long association with Fife, defence secretary Liam Fox has been accused of an “extraordinary snub.”
Rather than flying to Leuchars to face the music following his announcement, Dr Fox yesterday instead jetted to Moray to join the celebrations at saved RAF Lossiemouth.
Campaigners in Leuchars were “flabbergasted” to learn the defence secretary had left a trip to Fife off his itinerary.
The Courier understands that during his visit to Lossiemouth, Dr Fox met both staff at the base and jubilant local campaigners.
However, the trip left a bitter taste in the mouths of those who had been fighting for the retention of Leuchars.
Early yesterday morning rumours circulated that the defence secretary would come to Fife.
However, the speculation was soon quashed by Ministry of Defence officials who told The Courier the secretary of state was “only going to Lossiemouth.”
Carroll Finnie, chairwoman of Leuchars Community Council and a key figure in the Resident’s Action Force Leuchars, branded the decision “outrageous.”
“Dr Fox definitely should have come to Leuchars,” she said. “He would have passed it on his way up north to Lossiemouth and, despite his best efforts, there is still plenty of room to land here.
“I cannot believe he would just go up to Moray to congratulate people up there without stopping off in Fife.”
Mrs Finnie was also unimpressed by events on Monday when, as Dr Fox announced the results of the controversial basing review at Westminster, it fell to international security strategy minister Gerald Howarth to break the news to devastated campaigners in Leuchars.
“Never mind sending minions to speak to us, Dr Fox should have come here himself as soon as possible after the announcement,” she said.Ashamed”All Mr Howarth did was tell us that it was all the previous government’s fault. I think the government should be ashamed of itself.
“Dr Fox must know the impact of his actions and that his failure to come here would be seen as an extraordinary snub.”
The chief executive of Fife Chamber of Commerce, Alan Russell, last night made his feelings on the subject clear.
“Dr Liam Fox has gone to Lossiemouth to meet with personnel and local campaigners, but we want him to come to Fife and explain his decisions to us,” he said.
“We also want to explain to him what his actions will mean for the future of Leuchars and Fife as a whole.”
Despite rumblings of discontent in Leuchars, Dr Fox insisted the strategic defence review was good news for Scotland as a whole and that the nation’s “defence footprint” is set to increase.
Two major army units and a formation HQ will be based in Fife, with the number of posts expected to rise from 1200 to more than 1300.
The UK government expects to move the HQ there “no later” than 2014, with the major units following in the period 2015-17.
However, Mr Russell last night urged the government to “come clean” over the precise nature of the plans.
“We are becoming increasingly concerned about new information emerging that there could be a significant delay between the RAF moving out of its Leuchars base and the army moving in,” he said.
“Two years or even longer is being suggested, and given that RAF Leuchars contributes £60 million per annum to the local economy, this kind of gap will have a enormous impact on local businesses and services in the area.
“Fife Chamber is calling on the government to come clean about its specific proposals and implementation schedule so that we can identify what exactly needs to be done.
“We need clarity over when the army will move in and what exactly will be happening on the base,” Mr Russell added.
Campaigners clearly believe Dr Fox should be the man to provide those answers preferably in person.
Meanwhile, finance secretary John Swinney is to visit Leuchars today to meet community and business leaders, including members of the task force, and discuss the impact of the RAF base closing.