‘My first thought was as a dad with mouths to feed…’: Shocked councillor learns day job is being axed during budget meeting

A popular Aberdeen councillor was only told his day job was at risk as colleagues met to vote on it during a public meeting.

Ross Grant has served Tillydrone, Old Aberdeen and Seaton for more than a decade.

The Labour councillor has proudly worked as part of the Aberdeen Inspired team for almost as long.

And the father of five was stunned when presented with the council budget for 2024-25 on Wednesday.

It made it clear the SNP and Liberal Democrats now running the council were axeing the £46,000-a-year funding for the business improvement district’s city centre manager post.

Instead, among the squabbles over the £16m shortfall, they voted to bring the job in-house at the council for the cost of £72,000 in 2024-45.

Funding for Mr Grant’s job will cease on March 31, giving three weeks notice.

Ross Grant: ‘I may look to update my CV’

Outing himself to councillors as the incumbent in the Aberdeen Inspired role, Ross Grant said, sarcastically: “I am sure it is in no way politically vindictive… but I may look to update my CV.”

He later recused himself of the budget vote, due to his conflict of interest.

After the SNP and Lib Dems voted through their plan, including the end of his funding, Mr Grant spoke to The Press & Journal “as an individual – not for Aberdeen Inspired”.

He said: “My first thought is as a dad, with mouths to feed. It did come as a shock.

“It is difficult to see this not being a politically motivated move.

“What they have done is make me redundant.

“They are not making a saving, they are almost doubling the cost to recruit to the in-house role.

“The city centre manager post did not feature in the list of options prepared for all councillors preparing their budgets.

“The administration had to – with whatever motive or ploy – specifically ask for that to become a budget option.”

Ross Grant’s at-risk Aberdeen Inspired job was recently vacant

Ross Grant took the city centre manager job a few months ago, after the Aberdeen Inspired role was briefly vacant.

Predecessor Innes Walker officially left the post on December 31.

Mr Grant replaced him on January 1 after an internal recruitment process.

An insider at Aberdeen Inspired told The P&J it felt like a “political hatchet job”.

But SNP finance convener Alex McLellan told us: “It’s news to me that Councillor Grant is holding that role.

“The post recently became vacant which is why it ended up in our budget.

“We appreciated that Councillor Grant worked for Aberdeen Inspired but were not aware that he was occupying that role.”

However, The P&J understands Aberdeen Inspired chief executive Adrian Watson held talks with senior council officials about Ross Grant taking on the role as early as December.

Senior city staff were then told of Mr Grant being in post, “verbally and in writing” the councillor claims, in January.

In early February, Mr Grant wrote to all councillors covering the city centre to make himself available to them too.

Council to seek legal advice on Ross Grant’s job with Aberdeen Inspired

Mr McLellan, the SNP’s councillor for the same Tillydrone, Old Aberdeen and Seaton ward as Labour’s Mr Grant, revealed it was a cut the administration would have already made, if they could.

He said: “The option was put before us last year from officers.

“But when we explored that we understood there may be a requirement to TUPE transfer the post into the council as it was occupied.

“We created our budget when the post became vacant because it was a saving option we could take.

“Now it’s been approved in our budget. But we may have to take further legal advice given the post is occupied and we couldn’t take that saving last year when someone was in the post.”

Huge Aberdeen city centre regeneration projects require council to ‘set the narrative’ themselves

The finance convener said the drive to take the job in-house was about “accountability”.

And Mr McLellan explained the extra £25,000 he wanted to spend would cover recruitment costs and setting up the post, as well as salary.

“We want to set the narrative and push out our messages. That’s something the council can improve on around the city centre work,” he added.

“We have a lot of projects in the pipeline and that communication will be absolutely key, particularly for businesses on Union Street when parts are closed for period of time for work.”

Recently the council’s chief capital officer John Wilson outlined when the multi-million-pound works in Aberdeen city centre and at the beach were planned to take place.

Months before, branding for the masterplan projects titled Generation Aberdeen was nearly laughed out of council chambers.

Ross Grant: ‘It’s up to the SNP and Lib Dems to explain why they are making a political opponent redundant’

Meanwhile, Mr Grant – who faces redundancy in three weeks – told The P&J: “What the finance convener is claiming would hold more water if the decision taken would save money.

“But they are doubling the spend to make me redundant and create the in-house city centre manager position.

“You do have to wonder how it could possibly be that the administration was not aware that someone was in the post.

“Certainly, as city centre manager I have made myself available to council members of all parties and I know senior officers are aware I was in this role.

“I don’t want to make this incredibly political. But, for me, it is for the administration to explain why they made an opposition member redundant.”

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