Financially troubled Aberdeen City Council is being threatened with legal action in an effort to stave off millions of pounds’ worth of cuts, including reduced services for the disabled.
Council chief executive Douglas Paterson will face the claim today that the cuts were made in a way that broke disability legislation.
He will also be told several of those affected are considering seeking an interim interdict to halt them in their tracks.
The warning – in a letter from Aberdeen North Labour MP Frank Doran demanding a response by 5pm on Friday – provoked a furious response from political opponents.
Aberdeen North SNP MSP Brian Adam said Labour needed to come up with alternative means of dealing with the financial crisis at the Town House to be credible.
“I am not too sure what Mr Doran thinks he can achieve by making this type of threat to the council,” he said.
Gordon Liberal Democrat MP Malcolm Bruce said: “The Labour Party cannot stand the fact that they no longer run the city and are clearly trying to make what is a difficult time for the council as embarrassing as possible.”
But the move was strongly supported by Kevin McCahery, spokesman for the Choices More group, which faces the loss of the Choices Day Centre, in Westburn Road, on which they have come to rely.
Wheelchair-user Mr McCahery, of Donald Dewar Court, said he and other disabled people hoped to secure the support needed to take legal action.
He said: “The council has not given any consideration to the more disabled among us. It has not thought what is going to happen to us and seem to want to leave us to vegetate, with nothing to live for.
“It is sickening. The city council must be made to act more responsibly.
“I feel very strongly and I am scared for some of the more disabled who are worried and very agitated about what is happening.”
Mr Doran said disability laws required public authorities to consult service-users when considering decisions that may affect disabled people, as well as prepare impact assessments and apply their own disability equality schemes.
He claimed the council had done none of this.
Mr Doran said: “I have been asked by my constituents to write to Aberdeen City Council and point out the breaches in the law which have occurred, and to advise the council that legal proceedings will be commenced against the council for judicial review and possible interdict to prevent the cuts being implemented.”
He said he would be in contact with the Equality and Human Rights Commission – which has the power to serve enforcement notices and apply for a judicial review of council decisions – and the Scottish Government, which has the power to call a public inquiry into a council’s failure in its duties to the disabled.
Mr Doran said: “There is a great deal of anger at the way in which the council has acted and many of the disabled people affected by the council’s decisions are deeply upset and distressed at the way they have been treated.
“This is a very vulnerable group and many depend on the services from the council to give them a reasonable quality of life and support in dealing with their disability.”
Aberdeen South Labour MP Anne Begg said: “The council is in breach of its obligation to involve the disabled and other groups affected by the cuts in the decisions it has taken over the last few months.”
For the council, Mr Paterson said: “We will of course consider the contents of the letter when business resumes.
“At this point we believe that we have followed due process and, more importantly, that we are making every effort to ensure the wellbeing of our citizens as we work to bring budgets closer to our grant allocation and to spending patterns in other local authorities.”
The future of the many blind of disabled workers at the Glencraft furniture factory in Aberdeen is also in doubt after the city council withdrew a £650,000 annual subsidy.
The local authority’s savings plan also includes closure of the Bon Accord Baths, Doonies rare-breeds farm and the Lynx Ice Arena, which are all used by groups representing the disabled.
Meanwhile, more than 1,000 people registered their opposition to the proposed £27million in cuts when questioned in the city on Saturday.
Shoppers were canvassed for their opinion by Aberdeen South Conservatives.
When asked if they supported the SNP-Liberal Democrat administration’s planned cuts, 1,076 people voted No and 28 voted Yes.
Conservative Westminster parliamentary candidate for Aberdeen South Mark Jones said: “We were overwhelmed by the interest and response to our question.
“The message could not be clearer – the city council is out of touch with public opinion.
“The public want the council to reconsider their proposals.”