From Councillor Barry Stamp
Leader of Independent Group
Stafford Borough Council

Date : 17th March 2013

Use: Immediate

Barry Stamp the Leader of Stafford Borough Council's Independent Group has today challenged the County Council to explain why a payment of £60,000 has been made to contractors replacing the paving outside the organizations new headquarters building - Staffordshire Place.

"From the first day the County Council took over their new headquarters at Staffordshire Place contractors have been working to rectify problems with the building. Since that time various completion dates have been given along with assurances that all the cost of extra work being carried out was being meet by the builders and was not costing ratepayer a penny. However in the last few days the County Council have admitted they are paying contractors £60,000 to relay the paving around the building. One has to ask why this is happening when we were assured that ratepayers would not be picking up any of the bills. The Council have already paid out £24Million of ratepayers money from their reserves for the building that was obviously not fit for purpose, so surely they should not now be paying any extra.

They owe it to the tax payers of Staffordshire to say why this payment is necessary and just how much more, in both cash and officer time, they have spent in putting the building right. They can no longer say the repair work is not costing residents a penny because it obviously is.

They should also explain why they took delivery of, and paid for the building when it needed so much work to put it right. In the commercial world those responsible for allowing a project of this magnitude to go so wrong would certainly loose their jobs but for that is certainly not the case where County Councillors are concerned," said Cllr Barry Stamp.

Further details from:
Cllr Barry Stamp
Tel: 01785 822723 Mobile 07771 688331