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Labour Aberdeen councillors close to being expelled for Tory coalition

LABOUR moved a step closer to expelling a group of Labour councillors for forming a coalition with Tories this weekend.

All of the party’s representatives on Aberdeen City Council were suspended from Labour membership last year, after they signed a deal to out-vote the SNP.

The council is now jointly led by the former Labour group leader Jenny Laing and Conservative Douglas Lumsden.

The Star understands that the Scottish Labour leadership subsequently tried to persuade the councillors to change tack. They were reportedly unco-operative, and the terms of their power-sharing deal were rejected Labour’s Scottish executive committee at a meeting on Saturday.

Ms Laing said she was “deeply disappointed” by the decision “given that I and others have been members of the Labour Party for over 20 years.”

The Scottish executive also voted to refer each of the councillors to the national constitutional committee, Labour’s disciplinary body. That will now decide whether to permanently expel them from the party.

Supporters of left-wing Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard, who has faced opposition from the party’s old right-wing establishment, have welcomed the news. Some onlookers view it as a consolidation of the Scottish Labour’s recent shift to the left.

The right failed in its attempt to secure a more anti-Brexit position at Scottish Labour’s conference in March, and did not stand a candidate against the soft-leftist Lesley Laird in the party’s recent deputy leadership election.

A Scottish Labour source said: “It goes without saying that this decision was taken with a heavy heart.

“But the decision today by the party [to consider expelling the councillors], the conference, and Lesley Laird’s deputy leadership all signify a clear statement of intent.”

Ms Laing said: “The nine councillors affected by this decision met today as a group, and I can confirm we will remain in administration with our current coalition partners.

“Our focus over the next four years must now turn to the coalition’s aims and objectives which will improve the lives of the people of Aberdeen.”

The party source added that since the decision was taken, Scottish Labour had been “inundated” with messages in support of taking action against the councillors from party members in Aberdeen.

Conrad Landin is the Morning Star’s Scotland editor.

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