A row is brewing as local councillors say they were deliberately left out of a summit on tackling anti-social behaviour in the town by MP Melanie Ward.

The Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy MP hosted a meeting recently at Shorty’s Social Club in Cowdenbeath with representatives from a handful of groups, including the community council, social work, Beath High and the Police.

But local councillors Darren Watt, Bailey-Lee Robb and Alistair Bain were not invited. Cowdenbeath MSP Annabelle Ewing was also not invited to the meeting, say the councillors.

The event included atleast 3 Labour politicians, with Cllr Alex Campbell and Holyrood election hopeful Fiona Sword both present, hosted by Melanie Ward MP.

It appears there were no young people invited to the summit, and also no representatives from any of the main youth groups in the town, including CACA or Maxwell Centre youth clubs.

Cllr Bailey-Lee Robb said in a statement,

“It is disappointing to note that despite promises of a cross-party meeting, Melanie and the Labour Party appear to be more interested in playing party politics, with other local councillors and your local MSP not being invited along to discuss a very important issue.

“Since being elected, your four ward councillors – Cllr Bain, Watt, Campbell, and myself – have worked together to deliver the very best that we can for the local community, making a conscious decision to put party politics aside to serve the best interests for our communities.

“Unfortunately, it appears that this has been disregarded.

“Anti-social behaviour is a wide-spread societal issue that runs deeper than just simply pointing the finger at any one government. It is an issue that affects us all and one that demands a multi-agency, and societal, approach to deal with the underlying causes of it.

“Local people elect representatives to work together to resolve issues just like this. Local people have been let down, and they deserve better.”

There was similar sentiment from Cllr Darren Watt, who said,

“Disappointingly, I was not invited to this anti-social behaviour summit.

“Despite being at the forefront of our communities for almost nine years, no courteous invitation was extended to myself, or indeed other local councillors or MSPs.

“Over that time, I have built a wealth of knowledge and experience through direct engagement with Police Scotland, multiple council services, local businesses, staff, community groups and residents on these very issues.

“Unfortunately, the manner in which this meeting was arranged, and the lack of basic courtesy shown to other elected members was disappointing, particularly at a time when our communities need unity and collective responsibility from politicians of all parties.

“Anti-social behaviour is a wide-reaching societal issue, and addressing it properly requires a genuine multi-agency approach involving all levels of government.

“Local people deserve better from their representatives, and on this occasion, I feel they have been let down.”