Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Spat over Inverkeithing and Dalgety Bay councillor’s attendance

The Shadow Scottish Secretary Lesley Laird.
The Shadow Scottish Secretary Lesley Laird.

A Fife MP has suggested the kingdom’s Conservatives worry about their own “reported splits” and leave her to get on with the job.

The row emerged as the Tories criticised Lesley Laird’s council attendance record.

Mrs Laird has continued to represent her council ward since being elected as MP in the last general election but the Tories claimed the Labour politician is clinging on to four jobs.

Mrs Laird said group leader Dave Dempsey “wasn’t man enough” to raise his concerns in an open forum and should be more concerned about “reported splits” within the Fife Tory group.

The row erupted following the latest south and west Fife area committee, where both Mr Dempsey and Mrs Laird represent Inverkeithing and Dalgety Bay.

The Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath Labour politician said: “Dave sat next to me in a meeting for nearly two hours and wasn’t man enough to raise this question with me or in an open forum where I would have had the right to reply.

“Given the reported splits within the Fife Tory group, Dave should be more concerned with his own position and party, rather than worrying about me.

“Some people might think this a cynical ploy on his part to grab a headline, but thankfully I’m focused on the real issues in the ward and am actively engaged with constituents and representing residents on the issues that matter to them.”

She added: “As Dave would be wise to learn, being an effective councillor is not just about having a presence, it’s about action and delivering results and my track record speaks for itself.”

Councillor Dave Dempsey

She cited the fact she ensured the delivery of new housing for Fraser Avenue and investment in local sports facilities.

She added she was actively campaigning for a replacement Inverkeithing High and delivery of the promised radiation clean-up at Dalgety Bay.

“I’m regularly contacted about issues at the heart of the community by constituents and that’s my focus – it should also be his.”

Rules stipulate a councillor attend a meeting at least once in six months.

Mr Dempsey said Mrs Laird “showed up” at a council meeting on October 5 and not again until April 4.

“In between, she’s scarcely been seen at all and has missed dozens and dozens of community council, parent council and other meetings, where councillors do the real work.”

Conservative chairman Scott Campbell added it had “been clear” that Mrs Laird couldn’t cope with the combined roles of MP, councillor, shadow cabinet member and deputy party leader.