Essex: Stop wasting our council tax, claim (From Basildon Recorder)

Essex: Stop wasting our council tax, claim

1:23am Friday 16th November 2007

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Essex County Council has been blamed for wasting council tax payers money by delaying the sale of a piece of land.

Borough councillor Paul Smith (Lib Dem, St John's) made the comments at a meeting of the finance and audit scrutiny panel on Tuesday.

The sale of two pieces of council land on Brook Street and Jarmin Road, Colchester, could have made both councils a lot of money in interest if the sales had gone through quicker, he said.

"This is a scandalous situation, with Jarmin Road in particular," he said.

"While we have agreed a price we haven't received any money because it can't be sold until the issue with the county council has been sorted.

"In the meantime Colchester and Essex taxpayers are missing out on the benefits - the interest would be about £200,000 in just one year.

"I want to know why Essex County Council has been stopping the sales going ahead."

Councillor Nick Taylor, resources portfolio holder for the borough council, said he was not able to comment on the county council's reasons.

He explained the sale of the Jarmin Road site would be going before an arbitrator next month to decide how any proceeds would be divided.

The councillors on the panel decided to wait until the arbitration had been carried out and then suggest the whole matter be looked at by the county council's scrutiny panel.

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