Earlier this week I received a letter from the Scottish Government's Housing Minister, Alex Neil MSP, finally agreeing - after nearly a year of me asking - to visit the Clune Park area of Port Glasgow to see at first hand the challenges faced by the Council and local residents. Delighted by this news, and conscious of the impending Scottish election, I immediately asked officers to contact the Minister's Diary Secretary - as requested - to agree a date for the visit.
You can imagine my shock - and I have to say disgust - when I was advised by the officer who contacted the Minister's office that Mr Neil would be unable to visit Clune Park before Parliament is dissolved for the election. The Diary Secretary suggested that we contact Mr Neil again after the election of 5 May, assuming he is still a Minister!
You couldn't make this up.
While I am extremely annoyed by the way the Council has been treated by the Minister, this pales into insignificance when compared to how the people of Clune Park have been treated. To raise their hopes and then dash them in a matter of days is an absolute disgrace.
I am bloody sure that if Clune Park was in a marginal constituency the Minister would have found a space in his busy diary to visit within the next couple of weeks.
I sincerely hope that Mr Neil is not the Housing Minister after 5 May if this is the way he treats people.
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