The chair of a local authorities Euro alliance has defended the body and said it has “never been more important” in the lead up to a post-Brexit Britain.
Angus councillor Ben Lawrie holds the figurehead role on the East of Scotland European Consortium, which was formed in 1991 and involves representation from seven councils in central and eastern Scotland, including those of the Tayside and Fife areas.
It has helped lever millions of euros in funding for projects including rural development and education, but has been labelled as being in “terminal decline” by critics, with questions raised over its finances.
The body lost nearly £15,000 last year and Aberdeenshire Council withdrew its participation, reducing income by almost £7,000.
As Angus councillors considered an annual audit report on ESEC in which accountants described the body as “financially sustainable”, Monifieth and Sidlaws Liberal Democrat Mr Lawrie said the commitment of other authorities remained solid.
“On the consortium’s relevance in light of the Brexit vote, I’d like to be as clear as possible – the East of Scotland European Consortium has never been more important,” he said.
“The outcome of the Brexit negotiations will have huge implications for Angus.
“The consortium plays a vital role representing our interests and lobbying parliamentarians to make sure that vital funding programmes for our area….aren’t forgotten about.
“It is working with our sister organisations in the west coast and Highlands and Islands to ensure that access to these funding programmes is continued, or at the very least replaced by national government.
“Whilst we may be leaving the European Union, we’ll still have a working relationship with them.
“There’s still scope to participate in European programmes like Erasmus+ from outwith the European Union and considering that Erasmus alone has been worth more than 11 million euros to the east of Scotland in the last three years, I think that ESEC will have a definitive role to play in post-Brexit Angus,” he said.
“The EU officer is in the process of organising a presentation to tell members more about what we do and why it’s important and I’d strongly encourage members to attend if they get the chance.”