Since January 2011, I have been trying to get from Biggleswade Town Council the answer to this question, in relation to the health centre planning application:
can you tell me how this application was funded and expenditure allocated within the Town Council Accounts?
I published a post on this on 25th October 2011.
As I have also previously posted I am not entirely convinced that Biggleswade Town Council followed the proper procedure in authorising and expending the £60,000?
The majority of the expenditure went through the accounts year ended 31st March 2011. Despite having obtaining a breakdown of the accounts I cannot find the expenditure. The £50,000 budget allocation went unspent, on the documents I have been provided with.
Under the National Audit Office rules you can only object to the accounts within certain timeframes. The one for last year's accounts ended on 30th September 2011, so any objections had to be in by that date.
Having spent eight months trying to find out how this application was funded and expenditure allocated within the Town Council Accounts, I was left with no alternative than to service a Notice of an Objection on the External Auditors and Biggleswade Town Council.
I sent the Notice of an Objection to the External Auditors on 22nd September 2011 and they confirmed they had received it.
As required by National Audit Rules, on 23rd September 2011, I hand delivered to Biggleswade Town Council Offices, a covering letter (2 pages), the Notice of an Objection (2 pages), copy of the minutes of the Public Land & Open Spaces Committee meeting of 16 June 2009 (4 pages), all emails between myself and the Town Clerk on the subject, all correspondence with the auditors from February 2011 to June 2011, and the Information Commissioners Office correspondence. This was a fairly hefty package.
Imagine my surprise when I received a letter dated 19th October 2011 from the external auditors, saying that the Council have told them they have not received the documents. The next day I went into the Biggleswade Town Council offices and obtained a detailed receipt for the necessary documents.
The external auditors have now confirmed that they will now give consideration to the issues raised in the objection dated 22 September 2011.
____________________________________________
BDO Stoy Hayward 22nd September 2011
For the attention of Matt Pickett
Arcadia House
Maritime Walk
Ocean Village
Southampton
SO14 3TL
Dear Mr Pickett,
Biggleswade Town Council Accounts year ended 31st March 2011
Notice of Objection
I am writing to you as the external auditor to Biggleswade Town Council and enclose a Notice of an Objection to the accounts for year ended 31st March 2011.
I enclose copies of previous correspondence with yourselves.
Just to summarise the situation for you. It was in June 2009 that the Biggleswade Town Council at its Public Land and Open Spaces Committee discussed a project they called Saxon Sports Village. At that meeting it was agreed a planning application should be made.
A press release to the local newspaper in March 2010 was entitled "Vital Health Centre on the way at last?" The planning application made in May 2010 was for a 5500sq m Health Centre with some sports facilities. The Health Centre had never been mentioned back in the minutes of June 2009 or subsequently.
I eventually found out that over £50,000 had been spent on this application and according to the Town Clerk when questioned about authority for this was told the minutes of 16th June 2009, do not reflect the discussions that took place. (copy enclosed).
Within the accounts for 2009/10, this is an item entitled Saxon Sports Village, with a budget of £50,000, but according to the papers the Council have given me, that went unspent. In the 2010/2011 accounts against the entry Saxon Sports Village there are no entries.
The reason I cannot pinpoint the "item of the account" or the amount is that I have been trying to find out from the Council, since January 2011, where this application was funded from and allocated within the accounts and which year. This is still the subject of a Freedom of Information request which the ICO told the Council on 16th August 2011 (copy enclosed) to provide the information within 10 working days, which they have not done, and the ICO are pursuing that.
Monies are still being expended on the Health Centre project now, as the Council are appealing against the planning refusal of January 2011, and a hearing is due before the Planning Inspectorate on the 12th October 2011.
I believe that Biggleswade Town Council had no proper financial plan or feasibility study in place before it embarked on this major project. Did not await the finals results of the consultation being undertaken as part of the Town Plan and did not communicate its own plans. Did not consider all of the relevant facts and acted unlawfully ultra vires (beyond its powers) by applying for planning permission for a health centre, and have not properly recorded the authority they have relied upon to spend the monies mentioned above.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact me.
Yours sincerely,
Richard Mason
Encls :
- Notice of an Objection
- Minutes of Public Land & Open Space Committee 16th June 2009.
- Emails to / from Town Clerk
- Our previous correspondence
- ICO letter 16th August 2011
Copy of this letter and associated documents hand delivered to Biggleswade Town Council Friday 23rd September 2011 for the attention of the Town Clerk.
____________________________________________
No comments:
Post a Comment