For: 24th April 2008
Carpet Salesman offers a roll of "road" for sale at £28,000 per metre
When: 6pm, 24th April 2008
Where: Steps of Southend Civic Centre
Contact: Denis Walker, Priory Park Preservation Society
The Priory Park Preservation Society has learned that Southend Borough Council had already spent £1.875m of local Council Tax payers' money on the Priory Crescent road scheme by July 2006.
The figure has emerged in a letter from Southend Borough Council to the Department for Transport, obtained in a Freedom of Information request to the DfT by campaign group Parklife.
Attempts have been made by the PPPS to get a more up-to-date breakdown of costs from Southend Borough Council in a fresh Freedom of Information request submitted on 12th March. No response has been forthcoming from the council, in contravention of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. [1]
Recent media coverage [2] indicates that the Council could be expected to pay as much as 25% of the costs of the scheme out of their own funds, further increasing the cost to local tax payers.
PPPS secretary, Denis Walker, said "At over £28,000 per metre, the Priory Crescent scheme remains one of the most expensive roads in the world but it clearly won't resolve the problems it seeks to address. The Council should scrap this white elephant and use the money for more worthwhile projects."
ENDS
[1] "10 Time for compliance with request" point (1) at http://www.opsi.gov.uk/acts/acts2000/ukpga_20000036_en_2#pt1-pb1-l1g10
[2] "Road scheme could cost council £3.5m" at http://www.echo-news.co.uk/search/display.var.2181095.0.road_scheme_could_cost_council_3_5m.php