As regular readers will be aware almost a year ago I caught a 10 second article on the STV news which told me that 5 Renfrewshire councillors had been reported to the police regarding expenses fraud. Having hunted the story on the STV news site I wrote it up either here or at my blog (cannot find the link, if someone knows where it is can you send it onto me?)
Terry was at first so hesitant to comment and deny it that we honestly thought that either he or his daughter were among the 5 unnamed that were subject to the report. However we then realised that this crime required intelligence, patience and concentration.
It turned out that Terry had thrown his lot in with a man called Tommy Williams, ousting Iain McMillan from being the second Ferguslie candidate for May 2007. After those disastrous elections McMillan was the unexpected choice for leader of the group in the council and Terry found himself in the awkward position of having pissed off the leader and made him look for another seat. How unfortunate.
The agitation against the new regime started almost immediately with most people noting that devout Celtic fan Kelly seemed to hate Blue Nose McMillan for reasons that went beyond simple politics.
In November Terry and Tommy (now operating in a group of 2) absented themselves from a full council meeting for reasons they never fully explained. Given that former Glaswegian trouble maker Jim Sharkey had not been heard of for a month previous to this their absence ensured that the full council meeting only had 14 Labour members present, down significantly from their high number a year previous. Following this meeting a Labour councillor contacted me to inform me that this was clearly an attempt to destabilise McMillan.
Yet the next month Terry duly trooped into the full meeting before Christmas and did what he was told. In the intervening month his co-conspirator had been fired from his job in Glasgow City Council and was under police investigation. Terry had backed Williams to be leader of the group post-May and remained loyal to him, even so far as allowing him into the safe Ferguslie super-ward.
Now we have what must be the beginning of the end game for Williams. The Labour Party have duly suspended him following his dismissal from his job and criminal investigation. Information received indicated that charges are due to filed against him any day now and the party are clearly distancing themselves in the kind of fraternal gesture that socialists are so keen on.
With Sharkey still battling his demons in a bottle this gives the Labour group a roll call of 15. If the Lib Dems had accepted the pleas of the Labour Group in May and went into an alliance with them there would now be a hung council. As it is we will now see if the remaining members have the strength of character to weather what is going to be a torrid year or if they will continue to eat themselves.
Sunday, 13 January 2008
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2 comments:
Is it just me or are things getting better for us Terrywatchers?
Terry's time has come. He is a titan.
Incidentally this post has raised in my mind the age-old question about politicians of any stripe, local or national -- why do they do it?
Why, when he could be seated comfortably at home in the evening, doing whatever he pleased, does a man (or woman) instead sit in some interminable meeting, surrounded by dimwits discussing lamp-posts or litter-bins or loft conversions? We are constantly told that they do not do it for the money, that attendance allowances merely cover their expenses (my left ankle tinkles as well, you know). And we are constantly told that they feel a sense of duty towards the public weal; that they are selfless, etc., etc.
But then I have never had the urge to tell other people what to do. Nor have I had the vanity to believe that I know better how to spend my neighbour's money than he does himself.
It is generally agreed among normal people that possession of the impulse to run for political office should be prima facie grounds for disqualification.
As a corollary, I would add that the nincompoops who get themselves elected always make matters worse. I cannot think of a single initiative launched by my local council that has not resulted in waste, difficulty, or inconvenience for the long-suffering taxpayer.
Thus any and all use of Terry for verbal target-practice, mockery, & the like, is not only to be welcomed but supported.
Have you considered applying to the Arts Council for a grant?
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