UNDER-FIRE Largs councillor Alex Gallagher has refused to back down over his controversial tweet around the explosion tragedy in Lebanon.

Mr Gallagher sparked furious responses from political opponents after he responded to a tweet by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon of a grandmother playing 'Auld Lang Syne' on a piano in her ravaged Beirut home following a massive explosion in the city.

Ms Sturgeon described the moving video as 'a song of connection and solidarity as our hearts go out to Beirut' and urged people to support the Red Cross in Lebanon, if they could.

However, the North Ayrshire Labour councillor replied: "But we've cut music departments to the bone."

Last week, Councillor Alan Hill labelled his Labour opponent 'an embarrassment' and called for him to be removed from social media.

However, Cllr Gallagher this week hit back saying his SNP rival should be more concerned with his party's handling of the exams fiasco than attacking him.

He said: "It is revealing that SNP Cllr Hill claims to be 'upset' by a tweet about his party's cuts to our music service in the very week when the SNP Government cut the exam grades for Largs Academy pupils. Now that IS something to be offended about.

"But it seems that Cllr Hill would rather leap to the defence of the First Minister than speak out in the interests of his own constituents."

Cllr Gallagher, who heads the economy portfolio in North Ayrshire cabinet, and leads the council's Covid-19 service change and transformation group, branded complaints from the local SNP group in relation to his previous tweets as 'hysterics'.