Following news on the 19th October of the Delegated Decision made by Cllr George Brown to spend £220,000 on a new lift at the Ventnor Botanic Gardens, VB has received news of a call-in.
In a leaked document from a trusted source at County Hall, it is revealed that several members of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee are calling in the decision made by Cllr George Brown.
“Inadequate consultation” and “lack of evidence” claimed
They claim that there was inadequate consultation with stakeholders, partners or the public. In addition, they claim that there is a lack of evidence for decision and that it does not meet with the council’s approved budget.
The paperwork states
The decision to award the catering contract was made in April 2010 with a proviso that a new lift was installed by the Council. Why is a decision being rushed through 6 months later?
According to Cllr Brown an estimated figure of £220k was put forward by Property Services. Why was this not incorporated in the Forward Plan? The Chairman of the Procurement Board queried the terms of the catering contract with regard to revenue for the Council – why were these queries not followed up more robustly?
The original report mentions the use of the revenue budget from the Gardens if more money should be required, what does that mean? The current lift has never worked properly and we need to understand and correct internal procedures when faced with serious failures in publicly funded projects – especially in the light of the new contracts being awarded, eg Cowes Pathfinder.
We are told this is urgent but no timeframe has been mentioned and when is it intended that tenders and works will be carried out?
Desired outcome
The members of the committee are calling for a thorough investigation into the proposed expenditure of £220k.
As well as the suggestion of a ‘value for money’ exercise, they are also demanding a review of procedures for dealing with faulty equipment.
Update 3/11/10 13.06pm: Official paperwork has now been made public, naming Vanessa Churchman, Colin Richards, Reg Barry and
Heather Humby as the members who called in the decision.
