Largs councillor Tom Marshall has made use of his opportunity to grill the council’s cabinet on a variety of issues.

The former Largs Academy teacher asked education spokesman, Councillor John Bruce, whether a quote from First Minister Nicola Sturgeon arguing against cuts to teacher numbers meant that the SNP-led administration would reverse the budget decision to axe 118 teaching posts across the area.

He also sought information on local investment, employment rates, fuel costs, financial deposits and teacher numbers during the full council meeting on Wednesday.

Cllr Marshall asked: “The First Minister, in response to a question from Ian Gray MSP, talked about raising attainment and closing the attainment gap and [she] stated “I do not believe that reducing teacher numbers is the best way to achieve that”.

He added: “Should North Ayrshire Council not now revisit their plan to remove more teachers from the classrooms?” He followed this up with a query on the impact of oil prices on the budget: “What are the expected savings to North Ayrshire Council in each of the next three financial years from cheaper energy costs assuming the collapse in the Brent crude oil price from $110 to around $50 a barrel is maintained?” Cllr Marshall also wanted to know whether the cabinet had met with the Scottish Government to discuss investment in North Ayrshire since the last council meeting in December and asked for the outcome if it had.

He also asked about the level of unemployment compared to national and UK figures for the last three years, and the total amount of council funds held on fixed term deposits and the interest rates.