Finance Fiasco

An investigation by the Liberal Democrats has revealed that the Conservative-led Borough administration has overseen hundreds of thousands of pounds being spent on lost legal battles over the past four years.

A staggering £529,864 was spent on lost planning appeals and formal challenges with one cost award still to be settled.
This comes as Tewkesbury Borough’s latest legal battle over the 'Bridge to nowhere' (in Ashchurch) is expected to cost the Council over £200,000 after the Court of Appeal found the council ‘failed to take the correct legal approach’.

Cllr Stanley said "This waste of over half a million pounds of taxpayer money could have been far better spent on those who need it most, this cost does not even include the cost of officers time."

At the same time Conservative Councillors have voted to raise council tax by the maximum permitted every year during their current term in power but have still raided council reserves to make ends meet.

The Council is set to have insufficient reserves to manage beyond the next three years! - we need a fresh approach to the finances and an end to Conservative mismanagement.

Liberal Democrat’s will be open and honest with residents about the scale of the challenges, we will review all council spending and work to fix the finances for the long term.