THE Labour council leader who was at the centre of a storm over a four-figure grant to the Orange Order earlier this year has announced that he is to stand down. Falkirk Council leader Craig Martin survived a vote of confidence during the summer after his Labour-Conservative administration voted through a grant of £1,145 to the Orange Order, which followed protests by Cllr Martin that the council was facing £20m cuts inflicted by the Westminster and Scottish Governments.
During the debate on the vote of confidence, Conservative councillor Malcolm Nicol said: “At the moment I can think of no finer person than Craig Martin to lead this council in these difficult times.”
The National can reveal that several other Labour councillors in Falkirk are also set to stand down, and the fate of Cllr Martin’s son, also called Craig and also a Labour councillor, is uncertain.
The council leader yesterday admitted to suffering “emotional stress” after making budget cuts earlier this year.
In a statement he said: “After nearly 20 years in local government and currently serving as leader of Falkirk Council, I am announcing my retirement from front line politics after the local elections in May 2017.
“For almost 20 years, more years than I ever anticipated, it has been a great privilege to represent the area I have lived and my family grew up in.
“In that time, I have delivered investment in local schools, play parks, housing, drainage and infrastructure to my local community.
“Nothing I’ve done in my life beforehand, and I’m sure nothing that I’ll do with my life in the future, will match the hugely enriching local experiences I’ve had over those two decades.
“I was incredibly proud in 2010 when I became leader of Falkirk Council. It has not been easy, as since the financial crash of 2008 savings and cuts have had to be made every year that I have been leader.
“However, I was ambitious to show Falkirk as open for business and ensure every child left school with a job or in training. I remember the SNP opposition and calls that building a giant horse’s head and park is a waste of money during a recession. Well now Falkirk’s tourism is up 41 per cent and the Kelpies has a world-wide attraction.
“Right now, 94 per cent of school leavers go to employment or further education, up from 75 per cent in 10-odd years and since 2007 has supported over 6,000 unemployed people (6,153) to increase their skills and has helped almost 5,000 (4,827) into work. The Falkirk business conference that I started 10 years ago is bringing jobs, growth and business confidence to the area.
“But four years ago, I promised my wife and family that 2012 would be my last term and that I would spend much more time with them.
“I want to highlight the emotional stress that I have endured, along with my other councillors, in having to deliver some very difficult decisions during the years’ budgets. None of us got into local politics to cut services, the reverse is true.”
Falkirk independent councillor Brian McCabe, who was cleared of breaching the local government code of conduct after calling the council administration corrupt and incompetent, said last night that Craig Martin “would not be missed”.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel