Issue - meetings

The Council resolved:-

to approve the requests for funding for a total of £5,750, to be met from the 2023/24 Guildry budget.

With reference to the minute of meeting of the Guildry and Mortification Funds Committee of 1 March 2024, the Council had before it, by way of remit, a request for financial assistance for various proposals on behalf of Aberdeen Foyer and with regard to the purchase of laptops for pupils at selected schools to assist them towards further education.

The Guildry and Mortification Funds Committee had expressed support for the requests for funding and referred the matter to the Council for approval.

The Lord Provost moved, seconded by the Depute Provost:-

That the Council approve the requests for funding for a total of £5,750, to be met from the 2023/24 Guildry budget.

Councillor Malik moved as an amendment, seconded by Councillor Blake:-

            That the Council -

Approve the recommendations made by the Guildry and Mortification Funds Committee concerning the requests for funding.

Note the failure of the SNP to honour another of their manifesto commitments to provide every school pupil in Scotland with a laptop or tablet; and that the Guildry and Mortification Funds are being called upon to fund a limited number of laptops for pupils at selected schools to assist them towards further education.

Agree with the comments of The Lord Dean who advised “that many young people in the city were not able to further their education as a result of not having access to technology and they were not eligible for funded courses”, as a damming indictment of the falling educational standards following 16 years of this SNP government.

At this juncture, Councillor Allard advised that he had a connection in relation to the item as a Council appointed observer to the Board of Aberdeen Foyer, however having applied the objective test he did not consider that he had an interest and would not be withdrawing from the meeting.

On a division, there voted:-

For the motion  (23)  -  Lord Provost; Depute Provost; and Councillors Allard, Alphonse, Boulton, Bouse, Hazel Cameron, Clark, Cooke, Copland, Cormie, Davidson, Greig, Henrickson, Hutchison, MacGregor, McLellan, McRae, Mennie, Nicoll, Radley, van Sweeden and Yuill.

For the amendment  (17)  -  Councillors Ali, Blake, Bonsell, Brooks, Cross, Farquhar, Graham, Grant, Kusznir, Lawrence, Macdonald, McLeod, Malik, Massey, Thomson, Tissera and Watson.

Declined to vote  (1)  -  Councillor Crockett.

The Council resolved:-

to adopt the motion.