Tram communications

As regular blog readers will know, I'm pretty supportive of the tram project - a view that's not held by every political party in the City Chambers ...

... imagine then our collective disbelief when we carefully read the second bullet point of paragraph 4.1 of this overview report at our Group Meeting last night. I'll quote it:

"delegates authority to me, in consultation with the Council Leader and Depute Leader, to put in place revised arrangements for communications activity"

... yes, you've got it - that is asking for the Council Chief Executive to have delegated authority to finalise communications activity for the tram project in consultation with the Council Leader (fair enough - she wants the trams) along with the Council Deputy Leader; who last time I checked wanted to cancel the whole tram project!

Following that overview report, there are a whole suite of further reports on the tram project (see 8.1 on the the main agenda here), all of which we are broadly supportive of ...

... but allowing oversight of tram communications to an opponent of the tram project - errr, one has to wonder why this has even made it into any set of proposed recommendations?

I wonder if the Council Leader has even really thought this one through properly?

If this is approved, does she think the Council Deputy Leader will play a constructive role in this communications activity??

I don't need to answer that because its so bloody obvious what will happen :-(