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| Scottish council election: Tories launch campaign drive | Scottish council election: Tories launch campaign drive |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| The Scottish Conservatives have pledged to give communities a chance to run local services, as they launched their council election campaign. | The Scottish Conservatives have pledged to give communities a chance to run local services, as they launched their council election campaign. |
| Party leader Ruth Davidson said her opponents wanted to centralise power which should be in local hands. | Party leader Ruth Davidson said her opponents wanted to centralise power which should be in local hands. |
| Ms Davidson also backed council tax cuts and business rate changes. | Ms Davidson also backed council tax cuts and business rate changes. |
| The Tories also want to leapfrog the Lib Dems to become the third largest party of local government, when voters go to the polls on 3 May. | The Tories also want to leapfrog the Lib Dems to become the third largest party of local government, when voters go to the polls on 3 May. |
| Speaking in Edinburgh, Ms Davidson, whose party won 131 seats at the last local government election, said her party also had a strong track record as part of council administrations in eight areas. | Speaking in Edinburgh, Ms Davidson, whose party won 131 seats at the last local government election, said her party also had a strong track record as part of council administrations in eight areas. |
| The Scots Tories pledged to give community and voluntary bodies a right to bid for the running of services, to end the "damaging" assumption that councils should have a monopoly on providing them. | The Scots Tories pledged to give community and voluntary bodies a right to bid for the running of services, to end the "damaging" assumption that councils should have a monopoly on providing them. |
| Right-to-by laws on purchasing land and other assets would also be reformed to give local groups "a right of first offer" on sales. | |
| Schools would also able to operate outwith council control, where appropriate, and communities would get the chance to set up their own. | Schools would also able to operate outwith council control, where appropriate, and communities would get the chance to set up their own. |
| Ms Davidson backed reductions in council tax, which has been frozen in Scotland since the SNP came to power in 2007, while saying 100% of non-domestic rate cash raised above targets should go straight back to local authorities. | Ms Davidson backed reductions in council tax, which has been frozen in Scotland since the SNP came to power in 2007, while saying 100% of non-domestic rate cash raised above targets should go straight back to local authorities. |
| The policies were set out in a "national support document", which is being accompanied by a series of local manifestos. | The policies were set out in a "national support document", which is being accompanied by a series of local manifestos. |
| The Tory leader, whose party is fielding 360 candidates across 331 multi-member wards, said: "We are a national party with a local agenda to devolve power closer to communities and the individual - that's why we want councils to have a greater say over how decisions are made and money is spent. | The Tory leader, whose party is fielding 360 candidates across 331 multi-member wards, said: "We are a national party with a local agenda to devolve power closer to communities and the individual - that's why we want councils to have a greater say over how decisions are made and money is spent. |
| "Because of our commitment to localism, we are launching individual manifestos for each council area in mainland Scotland outlining local priorities - what works in Stonehaven might not be right for Selkirk and vice versa." | "Because of our commitment to localism, we are launching individual manifestos for each council area in mainland Scotland outlining local priorities - what works in Stonehaven might not be right for Selkirk and vice versa." |
| Ms Davidson said her party had succeeded in several council areas, such as boosting recycling in the Borders from 8% to 40%, and overseeing a "dramatic" improvement in education in South Ayrshire. | Ms Davidson said her party had succeeded in several council areas, such as boosting recycling in the Borders from 8% to 40%, and overseeing a "dramatic" improvement in education in South Ayrshire. |
| May's council elections are the first since devolution to be held separately from the election to the Scottish Parliament. | May's council elections are the first since devolution to be held separately from the election to the Scottish Parliament. |
| A system of proportional representation, where voters rank candidates in order of preference, is being used to elect 1,223 councillors across Scotland's 32 local authorities. | A system of proportional representation, where voters rank candidates in order of preference, is being used to elect 1,223 councillors across Scotland's 32 local authorities. |