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Council refuses to reveal study cost (From Stourbridge News)
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Council refuses to reveal study cost
12:57pm Friday 24th July 2009
DUDLEY Council has refused to confess how much taxpayers' cash is being spent on the glass feasibility study.
Stourbridge resident Major Robbins urged Tory council bosses to declare the cost of the study - being carried out by L&R Consulting - at last night’s joint meeting of Brierley Hill and Stourbridge Area Commitees at Wordsley Community Centre.
But director of the urban environment John Millar said the information was “commercially sensitive” and could not be released.
With legal advisor Helen Kidd adding: “It’s right and proper for the council not to reveal that information.”
However Major Robbins disagreed, saying:: “It’s not now commercially sensitive - the contract has been placed. We need to know how much this consultation is costing.”
Kingswinford councillor Dave Tyler later told the meeting he too had not been privvy to the consultants’ fees - but said he didn’t think there would be “much change out of £30,000”.
Stourbridge councillor Les Jones, Dudley’s deputy leader, defended the council’s decision to commission the study, saying: “Yes we could do anything on a shoestring, but this is too important to rely on people whose day job isn’t to look at the wider aspects of this issue.”
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Your Say Your Stourbridge
neil53, west hagley says...
4:52pm Fri 24 Jul 09
Have you forgotten you live in a democracy?
Shame on you Go to Communist China where you surely belong.
neil53, west hagley says...
4:57pm Fri 24 Jul 09
Stop defending the undefendable. Any taxpayer in any town , city and village is privy to this kind of information!
Goodness knows what you lot mean by "commercially sensitive information." Can you please explain?
neil53, west hagley says...
5:01pm Fri 24 Jul 09
Many of us are sick of councillors' delusions of grandeur when their brains are clearly half-dead anyway.
AnneN, says...
9:10pm Fri 24 Jul 09
neil53, west hagley says...
7:49am Sat 25 Jul 09
IQ and maths tests for ALL councillors in future.
From personal experience I can inform all readers that there are members of the planning committee who don't know metres from their elbows, rather unfortunate when it comes to approving lare fences as they did for example at Treherne's farm, Stourbridge.
neil53, west hagley says...
8:00am Sat 25 Jul 09
neil53, west hagley says...
8:26am Sat 25 Jul 09
neil53, west hagley says...
7:25am Sun 26 Jul 09
One would think his bean-counting should be a little more effective and put the needs and desires of the taxpayer first.
neil53, west hagley says...
7:34am Sun 26 Jul 09
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The Villan , Stourbridge says...
2:12pm Fri 24 Jul 09
What a bunch of contradictory idiots!
"I know" said the council, "lets save £120k by closing the Broadfield Museum but lets us spend 25% of the annual expenditure on a feasibility study".
They vote for 25% salary increases, now they spend 25% on a study. A pattern is beginning to appear...... Beggars belief. So lets vote the buggers out at the next election.