Last Wednesday (14th October), the Isle of Wight council issued a press release, announcing the appointment of an independent transport expert to help inform the Island’s collective response to DfT proposals for Island Line trains.
Concerns about the appointment were raised the same evening at the Isle of Wight full council meeting (read our live coverage), when Labour councillor Geoff Lumley asked for an assurance there were no links between Christopher Garnett and either the KILF campaign group or the MP’s transport advisor, Nick Finney.
Questions to the council
Given the concerns raised at the council meeting and following it, OnTheWight posed a number of questions to the council about Mr Garnett’s appointment.
- Which member (as mentioned by JB last night) recommended CG as transport advisor?
- What was the process for selection?
- What due diligence was carried out by the IWC on each of the DfT suggestions?
- Are the IWC aware of any professional or personal connections between CG and Nick Finney?
- If there is a connection between them, does that alter the IWC’s selection and if not why not?
- Who in the DfT put together the list of suggested names?
Council’s response
After chasing several times for a response, we finally were sent the following statement from the council yesterday (Tuesday) afternoon.
Councillor Jonathan Bacon, Isle of Wight Council leader, said:
“Mr Garnett’s experience and professionalism are unparalleled and it would be churlish to reject the offer of his assistance based on prejudice and the desire to make mischief to unclear ends.
“I have every confidence he will be fair and balanced in his approach to helping the Island taking proper account of the views of all stakeholders.
“We must remember that ultimately the Department for Transport is the body that will make the decisions about Island Line and not the Isle of Wight Council.”
Didn’t answer our questions
As can be seen above the (somewhat surprising) statement didn’t answer our questions, so we asked again.
“It’s lovely that you’ve sent us a statement that in effect says “don’t worry” – but when will the answers to our questions, that we sent five days ago, that we were told today that you were “working on”, arrive? Sure the statement isn’t in place of answers to the questions.”
Leader responds
Two hours later, we were grateful that leader of the Isle of Wight council, Jonathan Bacon replied with more fulsome answers.
1. Mr Garnett’s ward member recommended him. He was also recommended by the DfT. (OnTheWight understands Mr Garnett lives in Nettlestone, so his cllr would be Reg Barry. Ed)
2. A number of discussions were held with Mr Garnett to confirm his appetite to help the Island in the short timescales set by the Department for Transport. We also established his expertise and willingness to help pro bono and the fact he has a strong link and interest in the isle of Wight.
3. Not sure what you mean by this in the circumstances. Mr Garnett was suggested by DfT as having significant and relevant experience to assist in this role
4. Mr Garnett has confirmed to the council that he knows Mr Finney; they work in the same niche sector. in the circumstances it woud be bizarre if they did not know each other.
5. See above
6. Mr Garnett’s name was suggested in a meeting with the Director of Rail Franchising for the DfT
It must be remembered that the DfT will be the final decision maker for what will happen with Island Line. There is no decision to be made by the council. The council is merely seeking to find a way of coordinating a response from Island Stakeholders to help inform the expressed intention to deliver the services and put the line on a sustainable footing for the future. We can either engage with the process or allow the government to finalise its plans without any involvement from the IW. Mr Garnett’s assistance allows us to engage with respected expert assistance with the added benefit of the assistance being provided pro bono.
See more on the Garnett Report.
Image: tompagenet under CC BY 2.0
