Tag: David Harrington

Care home closures at Peterborough hustings

11:45 Friday 1st May 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

PAUL STAINTON: Is it time we talked about adult social care in a serious way Stewart Jackson? Is it time we looked after our elderly in a better way, and spent more money on it? Surely not the time to be closing care homes, is it?
STEWART JACKSON: Well I’m not going to defend the City Council’s decision on care homes. They’ll have to come on and defend that themselves. My view is that in a sense adult social care and the co-ordination between acute district hospitals, GPs and the City Council is almost an issue above politics. Because none of us can stop the demographic change, the number of over 85’s doubling in the next twenty years.
PAUL STAINTON: And it’s time to do something now isn’t it Lisa Forbes, and everybody get together on this before it’s too late In thirty years time we’re all going to be looking after each other on zimmer frames, aren’t we?
Continue reading “Care home closures at Peterborough hustings”

Fletton Parkway overspend – the devil in the detail

08:08 Monday 16th February 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: There are calls for an investigation into why improvements to the Fletton Parkway in Peterborough will end up costing over 30% more than planned. Widening of the road hit problems in January when soil contamination was discovered, adding £4.5 million to the project cost and delaying completion. Now three counclllors say the decision to approve that extra spending needs to be looked at closely or called in. One of those councillors is David Harrington, an Independent councillor who represents Newborough. David, what’s your issue with the way this decision’s been made?
DAVID HARRINGTON: Good morning Dotty. Well the purpose of the call-in is not to question the need for the scheme. I fully appreciate that growth has got to take place in the city, but it’s has to be measured and it has to be sustainable. And it’s to look into if the Council can demonstrate if it has understood the terms of the contract it’s entered into, and effectively managed the obligations of the running of the contract. There are a number of discrepancies in the Cabinet report. It says that the fixed price contract option is a lot more complex than the preferred target cost model, which they went along with. And it’s actually not true. Both are very complex in their respective detailing and I want to question, did the Council fully understand their obligations in the contract. Because the type of contract, this target cost contract, effectively means that the Council enters into a partnership with the contractor, and they do it on an equal 50/50 basis. And all variations of that contract should be fully identified before the scheme starts, to see what proportionality of any risks have taken place. Now it appears that the Council have been fully loaded with all of the costs, and the contractor, as far as it appears, has no obligation in any of this. So it needs to be demonstrated why the contractor had no costs that it had to meet.
DOTTY MCLEOD: Because this is a considerable extra cost, £4.5 million to get this road finished.
DAVID HARRINGTON: Exactly. And there’s a number of things that are interwoven in the report that was put before Cabinet. It was already identified that this road would need a major upgrade. That was identified in 2011 at a cost of £9 million. Well that must have been apparent then, that there would have been significant money to upgrade drainage etcetera, to make that amount of money costing to be viable. So they must have known that there were going to be problems with the building of this new extension. So I can’t see why those weren’t taken into effect in the first instance, why this £9 million wasn’t identified and put in with the contract that we have now.
DOTTY MCLEOD: OK. Well let’s talk to Gavin Elsey, who is Peterborough City Council’s Cabinet member for Street Scene, Waste Management and Communications. The basic charge Gavin is that the City Council took their eye off the ball when they were signing up to this scheme. Do you think that’s fair? Continue reading “Fletton Parkway overspend – the devil in the detail”

City announces massive cost overrun on infrastructure project due to unforeseen circumstances

07:20 Friday 23rd January 2015
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

DOTTY MCLEOD: An extra £4.5 million will be needed to complete the widening of the Fletton Parkway in Peterborough. It’s after soil contamination was discovered under the carriageway. The City Council will be asked to approve the additional funding at a Cabinet meeting on 2nd February. It would take the total for the project to £18 million. Roadworks to widen this carriageway started last February, and are scheduled to finish in May. The extra money will pay for the increased cost of dealing with contaminated soil, repairs to drainage, and some will also be spent on the protection of Great Crested Newts. Critics though say the problems could have been foreseen. Let’s say hello to David Harrington, who is an Independent councillor for Newborough in Peterborough. What do you think of this then David?
DAVID HARRINGTON: Good morning Dotty. Well I’m very concerned and frankly amazed that PCC have allowed themselves to be placed in a position where there appears to be no third party contractual obligations, and therefore it appears that the Council bear all of the risk on this scheme.
DOTTY MCLEOD: So just explain what you mean by that, what you think they should have done.
DAVID HARRINGTON: Well they should have appointed an overall contractor to make sure that all the preliminary investigations were done, site surveys. And that contractor should have been under obligation to make sure these things were done. And therefore, had there been any problems, it would have been down to the contractor to put these things right, rather than the City Council. I just find it amazing they’ve allowed this kind of contract to be signed.
DOTTY MCLEOD: This kind of contamination problems though, we understand very unusual.
DAVID HARRINGTON: Well frankly it’s unbelievable, given the history of that particular area, which we all know is adjacent to what was the biggest brownfield site in the whole of Peterborough, adjacent to the former Orton brickworks. That issue of contamination does not appear to have been factored in in any of the preliminary site surveys, or any initial soil analysis. The extra cost to the taxpayer seems to be around 30% of the cost of the whole scheme, which cannot be justified on the premise that the problem was totally unexpected, and couldn’t be foreseen. It just isn’t acceptable.
DOTTY MCLEOD: Well let’s talk to Andy Tatt, who’s the Head of Peterborough Highway services. David, do stay on the line though. We’ll come back to you in a minute. Andy, it’s not acceptable. That is the claim from David Harrington. What do you say to that? Continue reading “City announces massive cost overrun on infrastructure project due to unforeseen circumstances”

The Man who Fed on Weakness

08:23 Monday 16th June 2014
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[P]AUL STAINTON: It’s a big night for Peterborough tonight. The City Council will appoint a Leader of the Council at its AGM tonight. The Leadership has been up in the air since those local elections in May, where the ruling Conservative group forfeited overall control after losing seats to UKIP. Speaking after the results, Conservative councillor for Eye and Thorney David Sanders called on the Tory Leader Marco Cereste to resign.
(TAPE)
DAVID SANDERS: It leaves the Conservatives very vulnerable indeed. I believe that at this stage Marco should consider his position and do the honourable thing and resign, and allow a new leader with new vision, new ideas, new focus and vision, and take the Council and Conservatives forward.
(LIVE)
PAUL STAINTON: Councillor Cereste reacted angrily to suggestions he should step aside. He told this show that he’d carry on as Leader, and the city would crumble to the ground if the Tories weren’t in charge. Here he is speaking to Chris Mann last week.
(TAPE)
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No Confidence in Marco Cereste

17:19 Wednesday 28th May 2014
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[S]UE DOUGAN: The political future of Peterborough City Council hangs in the balance after the Conservative group lost its overall majority last week. Last night Marco Cereste was re-elected as Leader of the Tory Group. He claims to have the support of three Independent councillors, and vowed to continue as Leader. But others on the Council say it’s time for him to reconsider his position. Conservative councillor for Eye and Thorney David Sanders told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire that the public had made their feelings clear.
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Marco Cereste on Minority Government

08:25 Wednesday 28th May 2014
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

Audio Extract from @BBCCambs

[C]HRIS MANN: So we are discussing the future of Peterborough City Council this morning. It’s after Marco Cereste was re-elected as the Leader of the Tory Group on Peterborough City Council. We understand he told his Conservative colleagues that he would be able to form a majority with the help of three Independent councillors, but it’s not stopped other councillors from voicing their concerns. David Sanders is the Conservative councillor for Eye and Thorney, and believes it’s time for a change in leadership.
(TAPE)
DAVID SANDERS: Unfortunately it leaves the Conservatives very vulnerable indeed. I believe that at this stage Marco should consider his position and do the honourable thing and resign, and allow a new leader with new vision, new ideas, new focus and vision, and take the Council and Conservatives forward.
(LIVE)
CHRIS MANN: And he isn’t alone. David Harrington leads the Peterborough Independent Forum. He’s also called on Marco to consider his position. The LibDem are thought to prefer changing to a committee system. So what does the future hold for Peterborough City Council and indeed Marco Cereste? Well the man himself joins us now. Marco, good morning.
MARCO CERESTE: Good morning. How are you?
CHRIS MANN: I’m very well thank you. Congratulations on being re-elected first of all by the Tory Group.
MARCO CERESTE: Unopposed.
CHRIS MANN: How did you convince them you should continue?
Continue reading “Marco Cereste on Minority Government”

Energy Plans Could Bankrupt Peterborough

08:07 Tuesday 26th February 2013
Bigger Breakfast Show
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[P]AUL STAINTON: Delays in getting approval to build a renewable energy plant in Peterborough could undermine the whole of the City Council’s budget for next year. Plans to build one of the biggest solar and wind energy parks in Europe have been delayed because of an anomaly found during a land survey at Newborough Farm, just north of the city. The Council hope the project will make over £100 million over the next 25 years, but the findings on Newborough Farm, and a further delay on the survey on America Farm, have delayed the whole project, which could derail the Council’s budget. Mike Goodliffe is one of the tenant farmers who could lose land if the plans are approved. He said it’s common knowledge the land has artefacts buried under it. Continue reading “Energy Plans Could Bankrupt Peterborough”

Peterborough Renewables – Leaked Email Points To Planning Panic Over Tariff Deadline

07:07 Wednesday 9th January 2013
Bigger Breakfast Show
BBC Radio Cambridgeshire

[P]AUL STAINTON: There’s confusion this morning surrounding the consultation on plans to build solar panels on 900 acres of farmland near Peterborough, with claims that key documents are remaining undisclosed, and consultation dates are being changed. Around a dozen tenant farmers look to be affected, with some fearing they’ll lose their homes, but the City Council say they’re needed to make Peterborough energy self-sufficient. The public consultation into the plans closes on 1st February, but BBC Radio Cambridgeshire has seen a leaked email asking authorities and environmental bodies to give their views ahead of that deadline. It’s led local councillors and campaigners to believe the decision process is being rushed through, and isn’t fair and balanced. Continue reading “Peterborough Renewables – Leaked Email Points To Planning Panic Over Tariff Deadline”