The head of a council committee in charge of potholes has defended his decision to miss his first day in the post to attend a wedding.
Conservative councillor Angus Forbes, who has run a wedding photography business for the past 20 years, was appointed convener of Perth and Kinross Council’s environment and infrastructure committee.
It followed a shake-up of members after the death of council leader Ian Campbell and the appointment of Murray Lyle as his successor.
Mr Forbes was absent from Wednesday morning’s meeting because it clashed with a pre-arranged mid-week wedding for a local couple.
His absence was criticised by the leader of the local SNP group Councillor Dave Doogan.
“I and other members of the committee are rightly shocked that the new convener of this committee simply didn’t show up for his first meeting to discuss the state of our roads,” he said.
“Committees are a key element within the council whereby the administration’s actions are presented and scrutinised by councillors and this process must be facilitated by the convener.
“Becoming a convener is not something any councillor undertakes lightly and it is most definitely not a responsibility which anyone should undertake subject to their other diary commitments.”
He said: “The situation with our roads is one which requires strong leadership by the convener not dodging the issue by his absence.
“Being a councillor is not a hobby or a past-time to be carried out when time permits. If you are fortunate enough to be selected as a convener you must get on and do the job.”
The Courier understands the date of the committee meeting was brought forward by a week because of another diary clash.
Mr Forbes said: “As a professional photographer I had been booked to photograph a wedding for over a year. This is the biggest day of a couple’s life and even Cllr Doogan must agree that I could not let them down, especially at such short notice.
“I had taken a very active part in all meetings prior to the E&I committee and was on top of all the issues that were to be discussed at the meeting.
“In relation to the recent poll showing the condition of roads in Perth and Kinross, this is obviously a matter of high importance to this Conservative-led administration. In fact, just this morning I was out with one of the many roads teams currently working across our area repairing potholes.
“As the report clearly states: ‘Our road network has suffered from years of under-investment’. Given the SNP were in charge for the last 10 years, then the reason for this lies firmly at their door. This new administration is good, but we can’t undo 10 years of SNP mis-management in 10 months.”
