Speculation is mounting that the leader of Moray Council could stand down after a controversial roads project championed by the ruling group was axed.
Council boss Stewart Cree and fellow administration members gathered for crisis talks after the £11.8million Western Link Road project was scrapped to save money.
Last night, Mr Cree declined to comment on whether the outcome of last Wednesday’s full council meeting meant his position at the head of the cash-strapped local authority was no longer tenable.
But he warned the Western Link Road project’s demise heralded dire consequences for the town’s traffic system, and revealed that transport officers had been tasked with compiling a dossier detailing the ramifications of not having another crossing over its railway line.
Mr Cree said: “The abandonment of the Western Link Road introduces a level of uncertainty that is detrimental to Moray’s future.
“Officers have now been charged with developing alternative strategies, and are putting together a report explaining the consequences of there not being a new bridge.
“That affects Elgin’s entire traffic plan, and they have already identified quite a list of things to be addressed.”
The council has already invested £3.65million in the project, and may have to return more than £3million to developers who had purchased land in Elgin on the proviso that the road would be built.
But members voted 13 to 11 in favour of scrapping the Western Link after being advised that the authority would have to slash its spending to remain solvent.
Following last Wednesday’s turbulent talks, Fochabers Lhanbryde councillor Sean Morton reached out to the authority’s SNP opposition group in the hopes of staging a takeover.
But Mr Morton was left fuming when Nationalist members rebuffed his advances.
He accused opposition members of having “no appetite for tackling big challenges”.
Mr Morton added: “I thought we needed to unite for the good of Moray, but without the SNP group there can be no unity coalition.”
An SNP spokesman said the group had no desire to work alongside Mr Morton because he had missed a string of important meetings this year.
He added: “The SNP remains ready to take on the administration of Moray Council, but it is not yet clear what the current council administration’s position is after losing control of their capital plan.”
