A Carnoustie councillor has hit back at claims he opposes veterans’ homes in the town.
Brian Boyd was angered by comments made by North-East MSP Alex Johnstone, who accused him of adopting a “not in my back yard” approach to having veterans housed at a new-build project proposed for the former Camus House care home.
Mr Boyd said he supports housing for veterans but claimed all options for the development had not been fully investigated.
“It is national governments and politicians that took us into wars it’s for them to ensure we are now doing the absolute best for these veterans and I don’t believe the council’s report meets this objective,” Mr Boyd said.
“Far from me not wanting to see veterans housed in my home town, I was trying to highlight that these veterans would prefer to be housed where their loved ones are.
“Decades of evidence shows that rehabilitation works best when those injured are able to integrate with established networks of friends and family.
“We simply do not know how many returning injured soldiers are from each of our communities, therefore we cannot know where best to locate these homes.”
The Camus House site is to be turned into 12 new homes, with an additional five earmarked for ex-servicemen. Mr Boyd has suggested the five properties could be used as homes for local people with additional support needs.
He said: “Without basic information about where returning injured soldiers’ existing family and friends are, be that Carnoustie, Montrose, Forfar or anywhere else in Angus, we are simply not in a position to ensure we are doing the best for them. Put simply, we do not want to build homes that isolate those who have sacrificed so much for our country from the ones they love.
“My plea for a pause to consider how the Camus site might be best utilised to house adults with learning disabilities, as well as other populations with complex needs, is surely the only mature course of action open to the council.”
Mr Johnstone claimed Mr Boyd had displayed a “lack of background knowledge” and said he had been involved in the project from the very beginning.
He said: “Not only did I meet with Houses for Heroes to discuss this and other projects, I, along with Angus Council, ensured Houses for Heroes were the focus of the Housing Scotland’s Veterans reception I hosted in the Scottish Parliament.
“The fact is that independent research showed a need for houses in the area for veterans and it is the experience of the charity that veterans, especially those who have seen combat, can settle into the community more easily if they are housed in close proximity so that they can provide mutual support to each other.
“In reality I’m deeply disappointed that Councillor Boyd has been unable to join every other councillor in Angus to welcome this ground-breaking development which will deliver real benefits to our returning heroes.
“I am of the personal view that attempts to stall this project will be seen by many as the worst kind of micro-nimbyism.
“Our wounded veterans deserve better.”