Council will pay £180k to fight its own committee
DERBY City Council has agreed to pay thousands of pounds to fight its own planning committee's refusal of permission for the controversial Sinfin waste treatment site.
Councillor Mike Carr, cabinet member for direct and internal services, agreed to allow waste company Resource Recovery Solutions to appeal against a decision to refuse consent for a waste treatment site in Sinfin Lane.
A conditional contract between the city council, Derbyshire County Council and RRS states the councils will cover 90% of the waste company's appeal costs. That means the city council will pay £180,000 to fight its own committee at the independent inquiry.
The decision was made yesterday after Mr Carr heard arguments from Sinfin ward councillor Baggy Shanker and climate change committee representative Councillor Phil Ingall against the plans.
Derbyshire County Council's cabinet made the same decision in private.
Mr Shanker said he was outraged with the decision and was looking to refer it, and the entire contract agreed with RRS, to the Audit Commission.
After the meeting, he said he believed there was a conflict of interest.
Mr Shanker said: "The recommendation to fund this appeal was made by the waste project board last week, a board which Mr Carr acknowledges he sits on.
"It should have been a decision handed to the leader of the council or someone else."
Mr Carr made his decision after hearing advice from officer Andrew Hopkin, who is leading the waste project on behalf of the city council.
Mr Hopkin confirmed the contract is conditional, so the councils are not yet obliged to pay the 90% of appeal costs.
"There is no legal obligation at this time to fund this appeal but the company would not go ahead with such an undertaking without the support of both councils," he said.
He said other options, including ending the contract and retendering, would be costly to the council.
Campaigners against the waste plant attended the Council House meeting.
Afterwards, Simon Bacon, of Sinfin and Spondon Against Incinerators, said: "How can the public ever trust this council again if they agree to fight their own planners?"
The Telegraph asked the county council why its cabinet meeting had not also been held in public.
A spokeswoman said: "The report is exempt from public view under Schedule 12A of the Local Government Act 1972 since it contains 'information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information)'."
9 Comments
by Shakeel, Normanton
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 2:55PM
“I'd have more confidence in Bernard Cribbins & the Wombles running the Council than the current Buffoon's.”
by peter, spondon
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 2:25PM
“well its not took them long to start .the lads at raynesway recycling centre .have 1 month to leave . all the stuff they recycled was thier wages .salvaging reusable goods composting garden waste .and clean hardcore /that was thier wages .sometimes they strugled .but now it will change they recycled about 75% now 87% will be burnt ,and wasted .valueable recources /what a waste my advice take it to charity shops ect . ive heard there probally will be a charge to take stuff there in the near future .more fly tipping and expense to the public .and ratepayers .in all abourt 300 job losses .in derby .thank you mike carr and co hope you get voted out . pete spondon”
by Tom Fulep, Sinfin
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 1:45PM
“Let's just get these idiots OUT!”
by burtonftw, derby
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 1:18PM
“so, the combined councils of derby have used 180k of our resource, that's 30,000 hours at minimum pay, or 5 minutes of every worker in derbyshire (assuming 350k workers and 100% tax rate for them 5 mins).
i'm sure everyone is happy to know that for 5 mins sometime they have some legal stooge pocketing their time.
stinks of QE though tbh.”
by sam, sinfin
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 10:41AM
“I vote we get Bernard Cribbins to get these wombles back to wimbledon common to do the only job that they have brains for, picking up rubbish themselves.”
by Angela, Derby
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 9:35AM
“This is just an excuse to go ahead with the incinerator. There is no way there could be any other outcome. The only reason they "refused" the planning consent is so they can say they "we listened to the public". This is going to built and that has been their intention from the start. The time has come to get rid of these people and replace them with others who will act in the best interests of the people of Derby.”
by voter, Spondon Derby
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 9:26AM
“You can't make it up.
Next these Lib/Dems will demonstrate how to beat themselves up. If one had to rate the competence of both the officers who wrote the agreement and the councillors who accepted their advice it would come out as being very, very low. I understand Mr Hopkins used to be in charge of the rubish collection service in Derby City and has now moved on to making a laughing stock of the council with another rubish decision. Who if anyone actually reads the papers presented to the councillors? Where will the money come from? Not those responsible for the decision but from us ratepayers again. We need to get the Lib/Dem clowns out and replaced by some grown ups”
by peter ambler, spondon
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 9:20AM
“i was at the meeting .it was obvious from the beggining mike carr had made his mind up . WHY? not for the benifit of health of the comunity ..the £180.000 thats for starters .it was admitted could be treble that .there was a get out clause where the council need not pay anything . .that stinks /baggy shanker and councillor ingliss .both concerned about the dangers to health .were just not listened to .then when independant councillor alan graves brought health for the future into it .he asked mike carr .would he like to leave a legacey for children in the future and be remembered for it his answer was basicaly no ..does he desrve to be in ofice ..i think he should be removed .and voted out at the next elections as a disgrace .with no reguard for anyones health /but his selfish own . roll on elections .ask the ones you vote for about health .as if you have bad health you cannot work .and provide for your family to give them a better standard of living pete spondon”
by jon, derby
Wednesday, March 03 2010, 9:09AM
“priceless! somethings in life are free, for everything else there's mastercard.”