Council agrees Forres group funding
A Forres-based group has been granted new funding but only after a heated debate.
Centre International de Formation des Acteurs Locaux (CIFAL) Findhorn, a training organisation which focuses on ecological issues, was granted £25,000 over the next two years following a meeting of Moray Council yesterday.
But many members questioned whether the money should be awarded, resulting in a close vote on whether to do so.
Alves resident John Hogg (Heldon and Laich) led the calls not to make any grant saying that it had received funding since 2006 on the basis it would eventually support itself. "It was supposed to be self-financing," he said.
The organisation is part of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and holds training across Scotland, involving representatives from around the world. It is part of a network of similar groups and was the first of its kind in northern Europe though there is now a branch in Edinburgh.
He suggested the group’s training sessions may be a "financial flop" meaning it would not be able to support itself and proposed a motion not to award funding which was seconded by the authority’s depute convener Alan Wright. Both said it would be unfair to continue funding CIFAL when the council had cut grants to other groups.
Moray Council member for Forres Lee Bell said: "If we’re going to continue funds to CIFAL for the next two years we should have an agreement on condition that they are going to have a series of seminars in Moray."
Gordon McDonald (Buckie), one of the council’s delegates to the group said it had been mentioned favourably by senior members of the United Nations and that it would not stay in Moray without the support of the local authority.
Stewart Cree (Keith and Cullen) echoed his points saying the council had millions of pounds in its reserves. "£25,000 over two years doesn’t seem a lot to me for the scale of this institution."
At a vote members agreed by 15-8, with one abstention, to grant the funding."
CIFAL Findhorn were unavailable for comment when contacted by the ‘Gazette’.
