Fears have been raised that an emergency summit on North Sea oil will “fall flat on its face”.
Aberdeen City Council Conservative group leader Ross Thomson yesterday voiced his “extreme disappointment” at the way Labour announced the event, with no details on its remit or venue.
He has e-mailed other group leaders on the council calling for an a commitment to constructive talks.
Mr Thomson said there was confusion among industry and both the UK and Scottish governments because the summit was “foisted” on the public domain with “no remit, no agenda, no date, no venue, no consultation, no discussion and no invitations”.
“So far it has been nothing short of a Labour Party press release to grab a headline,” he said.
“My concern is that with no substance behind it there is the potential for this summit to fall flat on its face or achieve nothing other than people gathering round a table to achieve nothing.
“For that to happen it would not only be embarrassing for the Labour group, but embarrassing for the city and I cannot stand by and see that happen to the city I love.”
However, he added that if organised properly, the summit would get key players around the table to discuss ways of “securing the investment our city need needs”.
Prime Minister David Cameron and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon have been urged to attend, but both governments on each side of the border said they were waiting for details. Last night Aberdeen’s Labour group spokesman Willie Young said they called the summit because of the importance of the oil and gas industry to the north-east.
“The oil industry continues to tell us that what is needed in Aberdeen is significant investment in infrastructure in order to sustain and support future economic growth. We need to work with the UK and Scottish Governments if we are to ensure the supply chain remains anchored in the north-east and we look forward to working with them and other interested parties.”
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