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Councillor's wife spent £7k on limo trips

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Published Date: 13 June 2009
A COUNCILLOR'S demand for an expenses probe at Midlothian Council has backfired after it was revealed that his wife's luxury limo trips had cost more than £7,000.
Councillor Colin Beattie, the SNP's national treasurer, called for all councillors' expenses claims to be published.

Mr Beattie's call prompted the council's Labour group to calculate the previous two years' claims, which revealed his wife Lisa's travel bill.

The 56-year-old had reportedly clocked up almost 4,500 miles in the authority's chauffeur-driven limousine, despite having her own Porsche and living near the council's Dalkeith headquarters.

The bill for 173 trips in the car was £7,417. She mainly used the car to visit Saughton Prison as a council appointee to the Edinburgh Prison Visiting Committee, stating she could not take her own car for "security reasons".

Council leader Derek Milligan said: "This will be hard to understand for people."



Page 1 of 1

 
1

Grahamski,

Falkirk 13/06/2009 10:39:46
What a laugh...it's like the nutty nat cybernats who bellow their rage at MPs putting in inflated expenses and having their snouts in the trough only to find that their MPs formed an orderly queue too....Mr Salmond, with his chin greasy and shirt slittered with Westminster gravy assured his supporters that it wasn't his or his MPs' greed that was to blame....hysterical
2

Grahamski,

Falkirk 13/06/2009 11:53:05
2
ha ha ha ha
Aye, let's forget the 'security' reason given - they don't even have the decency to put their hands up when they're caught...get those snouts into that trough!
3

Vivas,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 11:55:00
Most limo's are not of the "luxury" variety, they're just glorified taxis. That said, I can't believe a taxi from Dalkeith to Saughton would cost any more that 30 quid ... so she could have saved a couple of grand there without any difficulty.

What the hell is she doing going there 173 times over a 2 year period or so. She had to be there twice a week sometimes ? There should be full disclosure on whether 173 car trips resulted in 173 attendances at Saughton.
4

Irked,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 12:06:50
Why the heck is a councillor's wife entitled to any public money? Was she elected? No.

The money should be repaid. She can sell her porsche to fund that.
5

Vivas,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 12:10:18
"...council appointee to the Edinburgh Prison Visiting Committee"

I would like to know about her appitude and qualifications for this appointed role.
6

Grahamski,

Falkirk 13/06/2009 12:12:27
5
A nationalist repaying money or admitting anything, are you mad? As Mr Salmond would say 'sorry, but the system made me do it'
.....pathetic.
7

Grahamski,

Falkirk 13/06/2009 12:13:44
6
Err...married to a man who is a councillor and SNP national treasurer?
Surely that's enough?
8

The Tin Man,

13/06/2009 12:15:45
Perhaps the SNP national treasurer's wife could have taken the bus, instead of the Porsche, or the Provost's limo, if security and parking was a problem?
9

Alasdair MacWhirter,

Puzzled 13/06/2009 12:27:37
Now I've maybe got this the wrong way round, and if I have then I sincerely apologise but is Lisa Beattie, wife of Councillor Beattie not the same Lisa Beattie as here

http://www.midlothian.gov.uk/Article.aspx?TopicId=0&ArticleId=20782
10

alfonsa pedrosa,

embra 13/06/2009 12:41:12
This will be hard to understand for people,not really its daylight robbery.
11

Observer,,

Glasgow 13/06/2009 12:41:45
It is quite funny grahamski I will admit that, however it is also a load of nonsense. The councillors wife did not incur any expense at all she merely used the facility which was available. The car and driver were there to be used for official business.
12

Observer,,

Glasgow 13/06/2009 12:44:02
4 she's a prison visitor. So yes she may well have been there several times in a week. This is just silly.
13

Grahamski,

Falkirk 13/06/2009 12:51:46
12
Of course it's a lot of nonsense. But the nats have started this hypocritical nonsense with their sancimonious and self-righteous greeting about Westminster. That's the problem with shallow opportunism - it tends to come back and bite you on the bum....
14

alec splode,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 12:55:19
Councillor's wife uses council car on council business shocker.
Get a grip FFS.
15

Auld Twa,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 13:01:49
#10 Alasdair MacWhirter
She is most probably the Councillor for Midlothian East Ward 5.
That Lisa Beattie is shown in her register of interests as a prison visitor.
16

Observer,,

Glasgow 13/06/2009 13:36:15
14 shadenfraude is a dangerous thing, I would advise anyone against it. Because you are right - it usually ends up rebounding on you
17

Blackpool 1968,

13/06/2009 14:29:10
No onder the Councils are in debt, the solution they come up with is to privatise the Admin staff, bin men and close schools. Get rid of some of the managers and stop the spending on luxuries then there would not be as much debt.
18

deirdre catt,

dalkeith 13/06/2009 14:51:18
1) Lisa Beattie is a councillor in her own right.
2) She herself asked for her trips to be checked by council officials & was given the OK.
3) As far as her qualifications are concerned,I believe she is a qualified psychiatrist.

This is another case of EN getting being behind the times.The story, as reported here today,was in last week's Midlothian Advertiser.This week's Advertiser contains more up-to-date info.
19

mr broon,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 15:15:36
Irrespective of Councillor Beattie's profession, she needs her heid looked at?

No wonder politicians are held in such contempt!
20

Vivas,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 15:47:43
Thanks for the info Deirdre #19, I was perhaps too quick off the mark there.
21

Irked,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 16:51:05
So she is actually a councillor. Fine. But how does her business as a councillor relate to her role as a prison visitor? I'm not up for paying for councillors to go visiting criminals.

22

Don Roberto,

13/06/2009 16:54:31
This article and headline is very misleading which ultimately leads to poor old Grahamski's dribbling statements.

She is a councillor, these are her expenses as a councillor.

The article implies that she is similar to Michael Martin's wife and using limousines to pick up her messages.

It's rather telling that she's a single SNP councillor win a multi member ward with two Labourites as colleagues...

Yet a wee look at the members expenses show nothing of the sum mentioned above...

http://www.midlothian.gov.uk//Topic.aspx?TopicId=14

bottom of the page...
23

The real dracula,

13/06/2009 19:07:59
Then she should be made to pay it all back. She should get the bus shes no more important than anyone else.
24

Don Roberto,

13/06/2009 19:16:31
Who can forget Micahel Martin's wife's taxi claims for approx £7,000 for picking up food from Marks and Spencers?
25

MoiraMac,

13/06/2009 19:28:31
http://www.northlan.gov.uk/your+council/news/latest+news/could+you+be+a+prison+visitor.html

http://www.northlan.gov.uk/living+here/community+organisations/volunteering+opportunities/prison+visitor+member+expenses.html

It sounds as if the the Prison Visiting Committee post is a voluntary post paying only travelling expenses.

'#12 Observer: The councillors wife did not incur any expense at all she merely used the facility which was available. The car and driver were there to be used for official business. '

Perhaps she used the official car and then claimed £7K travelling expenses from Saughton.
This article doesn't give much info.
26

sceptic,

livingston 13/06/2009 19:32:45
What's wrong with you folks? She was just doing a bit of training in case her husband gets the Speaker's job!
27

brianmca3,

auld reekie 13/06/2009 19:55:34
well well we see grahamski gloating and shaking with orgasmic delight,at the thought of one snp councilor doing something wrong
well the list is huge for labour crooks in edinburgh and a visit to edinburgh sucks dot com shows liars and bent councilors galore
lets look at that mad councilor
Ewan “Rasputin” Aitken
now he was up to a few things was our rev councilor,including telling porkies,a few hail marys and he thinks hes clean
ex lord prov hinds now what is said about her
Lesley Hinds, who lorded over theft and corruption as chair of Edinburgh Lifelong Learning Partnership (ELLP), travelled the world at the taxpayers expense as Lord Provost looking like what the aforementioned fashionista called “a sow’s ear”. She is also a bit of a carpetbagger. Knowing she wouldn’t get elected in her own ward, she did a runner to Inverleith.
Ewan Aitken, another who lorded over theft and corruption in ELLP as Executive Member for Children and Families. As leader of the city he also tried to bribe us with a below inflation council tax increase last time round knowing that the city was totally in the shy-te financially. Spends his days now throwing toys out of his pram.
and the list goes on and on all labourites funny enough
oh and of course those in paul nolans cabal who made tons of cash disapear,etc and got booted by the people of craigmillar
28

The new waspy,

13/06/2009 20:36:50
As alc splode says its council business so whats the big deal?.
If she has appointments to keep why not use the council services that's what they are there for.
Cant see what all the hullabaloo is about apart from from giving ammunition to misinformed people like gorgie tony.
29

Voldemort,

Edinburgh 14/06/2009 13:32:19
OK - So that is bad - have him fired ... but ...

Come on Scotsman what else did the report uncover ????????

Don't state one sensationalist item and brush the rest under the carpet! ... WHAT WERE THE LABOUR COUNCILLORS EXPENSES OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS ????????
30

Speedy Gonzales,

Edinburgh 14/06/2009 16:31:59
Could she not have used the bus? Even at todays prices, £2.40 for a return trip on the #3 Dalkeith-Saughton. Under £500 by my reckoning!
31

Paula McGuire,

15/06/2009 07:57:14
ok so shes entitled to it but why does it have to be a limo, Its just daft
32

LillyWhite,

Edinburgh 15/06/2009 09:18:38
It's interesting that both Lisa and Colin Beattie have failed to declare a number of their interests (they own a number of properties in and around the region).
If anyone chose to investigate, they would probably find a number of other systems that they have had the cheek to finagle.
I would like to see them audited.
33

TheDisplacedGlaswegian,

Edinburgh 15/06/2009 11:21:42
"She mainly used the car to visit Saughton Prison as a council appointee to the Edinburgh Prison Visiting Committee, stating she could not take her own car for "security reasons".

Council leader Derek Milligan said: "This will be hard to understand for people."

It'll only be hard for numpties to understand. For the rest of us, it's pretty straightforward.
Here's the script:-
1) She is an elected councillor.
1) She is the council appointee to the Edinburgh Prison Visiting Committee.
2) She is entitled to use the council limo on council business.
3) She averaged 7 limo trips a month (not return trips, just trips).

This pathetic excuse for a paper makes no effort to say what her main role in the council is. Instead it attempts to smear the SNP by suggesting a councillor's wife was somehow abusing his position.
This pathetic excuse for a paper makes no effort to establish whether the each return trip counted as two trips - thus confirming that she visited the prison less than 4 times each month. Instead again, it attempts to smear the SNP by suggesting a councillor's wife was somehow abusing his position.
34

TheDisplacedGlaswegian,

Edinburgh 15/06/2009 11:37:50
Does this paper harm or benefit Scotland and her people? The blatant hostility directed towards the elected SNP government and councillors in this rag is outrageous. Scotland has shaken off its labour shackles and is moving forward yet this piece of keech attempts to hold us back by hoodwinking the numpties into voting against Scotland#s best interests (look at all the posts on this 'story' and you can easily see how many have been fooled). Why would a country's newspaper do that? Who owns the Scotsman? In every other free country in the world, the press hold their politicians to account - in Scotland they attempt to nail the good ones whilst they applaud and brown nose the useless, the corrupt and the ineffective. In Scotland, our press let these pigs employ their entire families and take from us what they like. They instead focus on smearing those that put Scotland and her people before all else. WTF is going on here?

 

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