Egos must be put aside within Aberdeen council for the good of the city, and it starts with co-leaders Alex Nicoll and Iain Yuill, writes Rebecca Buchan.
Oh, the weather outside has been frightful! But the arrival of the Christmas markets, so delightful.
With Marischal Square my main place to go, I’ve been filled with festive cheer from the get-glow!
Lyric-writing may not be my strong point, but I must say, after the doom and gloom of the last two years, it’s nice to have some fun pop up again.
Aberdeen Inspired’s annual festive venture has not always gone down well with everyone, especially the Abermoaners. But what is the alternative?
As far as I can see, the only one is not having a Christmas market at all. And what does that leave us with?
The same lights we’ve had for about a decade, and a tree that gets blasted by the elements in the Castlegate – where no one ever goes (unless you’re in the market for a vegan baker).
Council has lost sight of what’s best for the city
Whatever your thoughts on the business improvement district, it does try to deliver something, not just for the businesses they support, but for the people of the city who desperately long for Aberdeen to have nice things.
Aberdeen Inspired’s goal is in stark contrast to that of our current council administration, which is so focused on one-upping the Tory or Labour rulers who came before them that it is losing sight of what is best for our city.
It would appear to anyone who spends any time watching the goings-on within the Town House that we should not expect anything progressive from this bunch
It would appear to anyone who spends any time watching the goings-on within the Town House that we should not expect anything progressive from this bunch. In the first six months of the SNP-Lib Dem coalition, what we have witnessed is resistance to change and overruling of ambitious promises made to the people.
Union Street pedestrianisation was the first thing to get swiftly scrapped, ignoring all the advice from businesses and, indeed, the council’s own officers, who they pay handsomely.
Union Terrace Gardens delay is a disaster
“Well, they might just have had strong views on traffic being allowed to remain on that 400-metre stretch of road,” I hear you say.
OK, so let’s talk about Union Terrace Gardens then. It has been nothing short of a disaster. And that IS the fault of the previous administration.
But our local authority has spent more than £30 million rebuilding it, almost from scratch, and it’s still not finished, more than three years on.
Regardless of whose idea it was, it’s the responsibility of the council now to see the plan through, which is why I was genuinely appalled to read about Alex Nicoll’s refusal to visit the ongoing project site because he “doesn’t do hard hat and hi-viz”.
It was clear to me then that Nicoll had no interest in that project – one expected to reshape our city centre.
Then, the co-leaders openly dismissed any support of using public money for the Dons’ new stadium at the beach, regardless of whether the facilities look set to benefit the local community or not.
Now, this one interests me a lot, because it’s what appears to have split councillor Nicoll’s party, both within the local authority and nationally.
Council co-leaders are too focused on themselves
It has been reported that senior members of the SNP in Holyrood support the stadium plans, and at least five of Nicoll’s councillors within the administration are said to be at odds with his way of thinking.
But it would appear that keeping his co-leader Ian Yuill sweet is a bigger priority for him than the feelings of those in his party. It is councillor Yuill, after all, who is keeping Nicoll in power.
And, if more evidence was even needed, the recent rollout of ebikes for hire in Aberdeen, bringing to life the former provost’s “Barney bikes” idea, has gone almost unrecognised by the local authority. Could this again be because it was something touted by those who were in power before them?
Lastly, the recent success our city had in securing the Tall Ships Race tour for 2025 was something to be celebrated – an idea brought forward by none other than Aberdeen Inspired.
But, if you were to believe any of the communication put out by Aberdeen City Council, Aberdeen Inspired was merely a bystander in the whole process. An idea the council wanted to try to claim as its own, perhaps because, let’s face it, it doesn’t seem to be coming up with much else.
Will Aberdeen’s Christmas dreams come true?
This behaviour is getting out of hand. It’s game-playing and playground bickering, and it needs to stop, for the good of our city. Egos must be put aside, and we need to learn to work together. Every political party, every organisation, everybody who genuinely wants to see real change.
My wish is that Ian ‘Ebenezer Scrooge’ Yuill and Alex ‘the Grinch’ Nicoll don’t become the pair who stole my Christmas
For Christmas this year, I would like Santa to help Aberdeen City Council deliver the masterplan they have been promising for years. And, if I promise to be extra good, maybe he can help to get Union Terrace Gardens finished, too.
My wish is that Ian “Ebenezer Scrooge” Yuill and Alex “the Grinch” Nicoll don’t become the pair who stole my Christmas. Instead, I hope they find it in themselves to stop resenting the plans that came before them, and deliver what they can for the good of the people.
Rebecca Buchan is City and Shire Team Leader for The Press & Journal and Evening Express
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