CAPITAL OMISSIONS

I have referred here to the Council's failure to spend its Capital Programme budget before. Highways being one of the main underspends with consequences for Islanders.

The Capital Programme this year started off as £56m, but was reduced mid-year to £39m as they realised they did not have the staff or the processes (after Undercliff) to deliver. By the end of December the spend to 31 March was projected to be £16m. A massive difference even from the revised budget.

Some of the additional items that are not being delivered to Islanders are:

*** 20mph schemes outside schools - budget £200k, projected year end spend £74k;

*** Grants to provide adaptations to the homes of people with disabilities - budget £890k, projected to year end £390k, not spent £500k;

*** Sure Start programme for children - budget £215k, projected NIL;

*** Access to Council buildings for people with disabilities - budget £100k, projected £19k;

*** Planned maintenance of school buildings - budget £129k, projected £5k;

*** CCTV equipment replacement - budget £100k, projected NIL.

Not a good record for an administration that bleats about underfunding on as regular a basis as the LibDems did before 2005 !