KEZIA Dugdale was last night hailed as a “lone ranger” when she seemingly failed to register a vote – allowing Scottish Government ministers to avoid defeat in a Holyrood debate.
The drama unfolded after MSPs spent much of the afternoon discussing local taxation, with ministers coming under fire from the opposition over their failure to fulfil a 2007 election pledge to abolish the council tax.
A Conservative amendment, claiming the government’s plans to reform the tax “undermine the principle of local accountability and autonomy”, was then passed by 64 votes to 63.
But when MSPs went on to consider the amended motion, records from the Scottish Parliament did not include a vote from Dugdale.
With votes tied at 63 to 63, Presiding Officer Ken Macintosh used his casting ballot and, in line with Holyrood standing orders requiring him to back the status quo in such a situation, he voted against the motion.
The SNP seized on the apparent anomaly, making a tongue-in-cheek reference to Dugdale’s proposed changes to give her party more autonomy from UK Labour.
“In the first real test since claiming to have shaken off their ‘branch office’ status, it now seems Scottish Labour are taking their marching orders from Ruth Davidson instead,” said MSP George Adam. “But lone ranger Kezia Dugdale managed to defy the rest of her party – taking her new-found autonomy literally.”
Dugdale was later forced to insist she did vote and tweeted: “Today I categorically voted to reject the SNP’s council tax proposals. They made a promise to the people of Scotland – they should keep it.”
Scottish Labour called for an investigation into what happened.
But parliament officials said they had checked the electronic voting consoles in the chamber and were satisfied the system was working properly.
Dugdale was in the Scottish Parliament chamber at the time and had voted previously. She was sitting next to Labour MSP Iain Gray, who also insisted Dugdale cast a vote.
It is believed to be the first time a party leader’s vote has not registered.
In a previous parliamentary saga, former Labour minister Frank McAveety was forced to apologise for misleading Parliament when he claimed to have been “unavoidably detained” at a book awards ceremony when he did not turn up for a Question Time session in the chamber.
However, he had to retract after he was spotted eating a meal in the nearby canteen. Some months later he was axed in a Cabinet reshuffle by the then First Minister Jack McConnell.
Under the council tax reforms being debated yesterday, the average band E household will pay about £2 more per week, with those in the highest band paying an extra £10 a week – an average of £517 a year. The move will allow councils to raise an extra £100 million a year for schools.
The changes follow a report by the Commission on Local Tax Reform which last year called for scrapping the council tax and urged politicians to implement a fairer, more progressive and transparent system to fund local services. Legislation aimed at bringing about the reforms has already been set out in parliament.
Finance Secretary Derek Mackay hinted further changes could be made. He said: “We have embarked on a journey in local taxation. We want to make it more progressive, deliver the steps that we got support for at the elections, then engage further on what can be delivered next in view of the report.”
But Conservative Murdo Fraser said the SNP appeared to have “abandoned” a 2007 manifesto pledge to replace council tax with a local income tax.
Fraser said the Tories supported an end to the council tax freeze, additional protections for low-income households and higher charges for those in properties in bands G and H, but opposed increases for homes in bands E and F.
A Conservative spokesman said: “Notwithstanding the confusion over Kezia Dugdale’s vote, the SNP has been sent a very clear signal that it must rethink its council tax plans.”
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