A Fife MP has called on the Ministry of Defence to probe claims that RAF Leuchars may have been sacrificed to save the seat of chief secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander.
Labour MP Thomas Docherty has written to the MoD asking them to investigate accusations that Mr Alexander used his political influence to keep the Lossiemouth air base over Leuchars, which has been handed over to the army.
The move follows an unprecedented attack on Mr Alexander by North East Fife MP Menzies Campbell over the closure of the airbase in the government’s defence review.
The former Lib Dem leader claimed his party colleague had lobbied for the retention of Lossiemouth, which borders his Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey constituency, to suit his own circumstances.
Sir Menzies, who believed Leuchars would be spared, said, “It’s a remarkable coincidence that these decisions should have been thought to assist the political credibility of the chief secretary to the Treasury, or is it?
“The result of the closure of Leuchars is that the RAF has been banished to the north of Scotland.
“The army’s preferences have been met at the expense of a proper strategic analysis.”‘Astonishing dispute’Mr Docherty has warned that the people of Fife would be furious if it was found that the Treasury interfered in the decision in order to help one of its ministers.
In a letter to MoD permanent secretary Ursula Brennan, the Dunfermline and West Fife MP said, “The suggestion raised by Sir Menzies Campbell, namely that the chief secretary to the Treasury may have influenced the decision because of the redrawing of parliamentary boundaries near RAF Lossiemouth, is alarming and will infuriate people and communities who have loyally served the RAF for generations.
“I am therefore asking you to investigate this matter with some urgency, and appraise me of any correspondence between ministers in your department… and the chief secretary to the Treasury, or his officials or special advisers, on the subject of the basing review or the strategic defence and security review.”
The accusations follow months of in-fighting within the Lib Dems since the formation of the coalition government, particularly over the controversy of tuition fees and the North Sea oil tax.
The situation has been condemned by opposition parties, with SNP MSP Roderick Campbell claiming Scotland’s air bases had paid the price as the Lib Dems settled scores.
“This has been an astonishing dispute between two of the leading figures in the Lib Dems and shows how bad their battle for survival has become,” he said.