Michael Russell may face inquiry into school closures row

• Michael Russell: Faces claims of interfering in closures

The education secretary has been reported to Holyrood's standards watchdog by former Labour Westminster parliamentary candidate David Graham.

News of the complaint came as the schools closure programme in the constituency Mr Russell is fighting in the Scottish election was halted.

Argyll and Bute Council has agreed to suspend a review of its schools that would have seen up to 25 primaries closed. The review, being conducted to save cash in the face of budget cuts, was abandoned at a special council meeting yesterday.

The action was taken after it came to light that there were inaccuracies in the original information on which the consultation, which looked at reducing the number of primaries from 80 to 55, was based. The council claimed the review would help to save 1.9 million.

But the original review, which was passed by councillors at the end of last year, has now been shelved after the council calculated the impact of its share of Scottish Government funds for next year.

The council said it was dealt a reduced grant settlement of 4.94 per cent, almost twice the national average of 2.6 per cent.

According to the local authority, the government cash it receives will fall by 11.4m from 231.4m last year to 220m. The council said it would draw up a new set of proposals, which will be considered in March.

The prospect of 25 schools closing in the Argyll and Bute constituency, where Mr Russell is standing, had led to controversy engulfing the education secretary.

Yesterday, Labour reported the minister to Holyrood's Standards Commissioner after he was accused of interfering in the school closure programme.

Labour acted after leaked messages that Mr Russell sent from his parliamentary e-mail account revealed that he warned SNP councillors against closing schools, saying that it could be "very destructive to our reputation and prospects".

Although he is standing in Argyll and Bute, Mr Russell currently represents the South of the Scotland as a list MSP.

Labour has asked the commissioner to investigate whether Mr Russell has breached the MSPs' code of conduct rule 8.1.4, which states that an MSP cannot intervene on a matter outwith his or her constituency unless with prior agreement.

A Labour spokesman said: "Quite frankly, he is in a very difficult position and will have a lot of explaining to do when parliament returns next week."

Mr Russell's wife, Cathleen, has left her job as headteacher at Toward Primary, Argyll, which was facing the axe. She will take over at Sandbank Primary, near Dunoon.The Scottish Government has dismissed suggestions that Mrs Russell's job change and the closure plan were linked.

Last night, an SNP spokesman said: "Mr Russell simply replied to an e-mail and is entirely happy for the issue to be considered by the Parliamentary Commissioner. The real issue is that the Argyll & Bute administration had to withdraw their flawed plans to close 25 local primary schools, at the special meeting demanded by the SNP, which is excellent news for pupils and parents."