Thursday 21st November 2024,
North Yorks Enquirer

The £30million Blank Cheque

On the 14th May 2018 elected members of Scarborough Borough Council (SBC) voted to hand a whopping £30million to Senior Officers at the Council to spend as part of the Commercial Property Investment Strategy.

The Commercial Property Investment Strategy proposal was put forward by SBC’s Commercial Director Richard Bradley. Bradley’s skills command a salary of £78,700 for his expertise in commercial property investment.

Bradley’s skilful proposal essentially gave Senior Officers at the Council a £30million Blank Cheque to spend how they pleased with no further oversight from any elected members required. Clueless Clown Councillors!

The first oversight free purchase from the £30million pot of taxpayer’s money was made on 14th September 2018. A Director’s Urgent Decision was made by former Brighton binman Richard Bradley when he solely purchased the St Nicholas Hotel for a sum of £14million, which was sold for £7.3million less than a year earlier.

If any of the elected members had looked at the £14million deal to buy the St Nicholas Hotel and thought it was a spectacularly bad investment, SBC’s Senior Officers had steered the motion through the council in such a way that the elected members couldn’t stop it if they tried. Well done chaps, we’ve been well done.

Can you remember the last time SBC achieved a return from a major investment with our money? Me neither.

There was no recorded vote for the £30million Blank Cheque, even though the sum being voted upon is around one third of the Council’s £90million annual budget.

I thought it would be prudent to start asking current councillors about their 2018 decision and why they thought giving Senior Officers a £30million Blank Cheque was such a spiffing idea.

I’m not expecting any will answer as they are always shy when it come to commenting on their bad decisions and Legal Director Lyin’ Lisa Dixon is still intercepting any emails I send their way. If any reply, I will update the table.

Councillor Alf Abbott Conservative Absent
Councillor Godfrey W Allanson Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor G Andrew Backhouse Independent
Councillor Luke Backhouse Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Derek J Bastiman Conservative
Councillor Mrs Lynn Bastiman Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor David Chance Conservative
Councillor Guy Coulson Conservative
Councillor Michelle Donohue-Moncrieff Independent Absent
Councillor Thomas W Fox Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Simon Green Conservative Absent
Councillor David C Jeffels Conservative
Councillor Andrew Jenkinson Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Mrs Hazel E Lynskey Conservative
Councillor Mrs Helen F Mallory Conservative
Councillor Mrs Jane E Mortimer Conservative
Councillor John Nock Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Clive Pearson Conservative
Councillor Mrs Heather Phillips Conservative
Councillor Joseph Plant Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Martin Smith Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Ms Roberta Florence Swiers Conservative
Councillor Phillip Henry Trumper Conservative
Councillor Mrs Sandra Turner Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Callam Walsh Conservative No Longer Elected
Councillor Marion Watson Conservative
Councillor William Chatt Independent
Councillor Mike Cockerill Independent
Councillor Mrs Janet Jefferson Independent
Councillor Rob Barnett Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor David L Billing Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Eric Broadbent Labour
Councillor Liz Colling Labour
Councillor Paul Cross Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Gerald Dennett Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Vanda Inman Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Carl David Maw Labour
Councillor Richard Moody Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Neil Price Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Tony Randerson Labour
Councillor John Ritchie Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Steve Siddons Labour Absent
Councillor John Warburton Labour No Longer Elected
Councillor Sam Cross Independent
Councillor Jonathan Dodds UKIP No Longer Elected
Councillor Colin Haddington UKIP No Longer Elected
Councillor Norman K Murphy UKIP No Longer Elected
Councillor Roxanne Murphy Independent
Councillor Dilys Vine Cluer Green No Longer Elected
Councillor Mark Terence Vesey Green Absent

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