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Thurrock Council compared to Sky Poker

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  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    There's been an estimate that it's gonna take approx 40 years before it's sorted out.
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    The Council that just keeps on giving taking.

    Another six figure salary on the wage bill as cash-strapped council brings in director to sort out failed bin collections.

    Thurrock Council has added to its list of six-figure salaried staff by appointing an 'interim director' to support the authority's 'new waste strategy' and oversee improvements.

    The news was announced by recently appointed council leader Cllr Mark Coxshall and takes the number of people earning more than £100,000 on the council's director list to 13.

    This is at a time when the council has announced it is bankrupt!

    Few details of the new post have been given and the council - and senior councillors, including Cllr Coxshall, have not responded to a request by Nub News for an explanation about why the new post is needed.

    For the past year the council's waste collection service has been troubled - but the council instigated a 'reset' in October and after it the environment portfolio holder, Cllr Andrew Jefferies told residents that problems were resolved.

    In a frank and detailed set of responses to councillors' questions, Cllr Jefferies conceded there had been major problems in the department - which is managed by Julie Rogers' whose salary package is in excess of £130,000 - saying it had had a shocking record of leadership and had not valued its front line workers enough.

    Ms Rogers is the director of public realm and draws on the support of a number of assistant directors with responsibilities within her portfolio, all taking home salaries in excess of £90,000.

    It also takes the total number of people at the council earning more than £50,000 a year to 260, above 11 per cent of a total workforce of around 2,200 people.
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842


    Do you know how many Directors and Assistant Directors work at Thurrock Council?

    Less than half of them :)
  • EssexphilEssexphil Member Posts: 8,670
    If this had been done by a Labour Council, rather than a Conservative one:-

    1. Would Central Government still be preparing to write a mahoosive cheque from National Taxpayers to cover this:-and
    2. Would the Mail/Express/Telegraph etc be saying this is proof that Labour is not fit to govern?
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    The former chief executive of Thurrock Council walked away with in excess of £50,000 after presiding over one of the worst financial disasters in local government history, it has been revealed.

    However, Lyn Carpenter, who resigned last week from her reported £200,000 post leaving a £469million deficit in her wake, failed to secure an exit package that could have seen her leave with tens of thousands more.

    After initially refusing to reveal the financial details of Ms Carpenter’s departure, the council yesterday relented and issued a statement confirming she had received three month’s salary in lieu of her resignation but she will not work her notice. She is also likely to have received a pension settlement under the terms of her employment. The council confirmed it had not paid for her legal fees as she fought for her position since the council’s dire financial position was revealed in September.

    A council spokesman said: “As this was a voluntary resignation Thurrock Council has not entered into any settlement deal with the former chief executive. Lyn also received three months’ salary in lieu of notice.

    “Employers are legally obliged to pay the notice period for all resigning staff. That period for all assistant directors, directors the chief executives at Thurrock Council is three months. Thurrock Council has not met any third party legal fees.”

    Government appointed commissioners are currently carrying out a best value investigation and were expected to publish a report in January but that has now been delayed until February 17 as commissioners look at “further lines of inquiry”.

    Sean Clarke, the finance director who spearheaded the ruinous investment strategy is still under investigation by the council but it has not confirmed formally whether he has been suspended.

    On Monday the council issued a Section 114 notice, essentially declaring it is bankrupt and prevented from spending anything except on essential and statutory services. A spend panel has been set up to review any further outgoings.

    The council is expected to take decades to recover from the unprecedented financial disaster which saw it borrow millions from council’s across the country, including Castle Point Council, to invest in failed solar energy schemes.

    The authority is now looking for Government help to bail it out.
  • EssexphilEssexphil Member Posts: 8,670
    Sometimes, Councils say things which are technically true. But are designed to mislead. As in the above post.

    It is true to say that, if someone resigns, you generally have to pay their notice period. And I have little doubt that the relevant period is 3 months. Here are a couple of bits they have missed out, accidentally I am sure:-

    1. One way of avoiding having to pay notice is to dismiss an employee for gross misconduct before they resign. Which should have been an option given the hundreds of £millions of unauthorised and inappropriate spend. Which is 1 reason why employees in this position spend months on Sick Leave, in order to avoid that happening

    2. I would be amazed if they have simply allowed her to walk away disregarding her Notice period. Of course an Employer does not want this sort of person working in the office. But it is simple to place someone on gardening leave for the 3 months, with the strict proviso that she can be asked to attend meetings trying to discover how, why & where the money has gone. If the Council has not done that, then it would have to be asked why this was not done, and whether the decision-makers had a Conflict of Interest, either due to their political affiliation or their part in this whole sorry business.

    There are also a lot of questions to be asked of various other Essex (and other) Councils. 3 or 4 years ago lots of Councils were lending this charlatan money. Then they all stopped and lent money instead to Thurrock, for them to lend more than £1 billion to him. Money that was not theirs to spend. They must have known where this money was going, and the total lack of security for that money.
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
  • HAYSIEHAYSIE Member Posts: 35,571
    North East council gets back £15m loaned to troubled Essex authority that has £1.5bn debt



    “The council has received all of the money loaned to Thurrock Council back, with interest. Every local authority in England is ultimately backed by national Government; the risk of a local authority defaulting on a loan to another remains theoretical. Newcastle City Council has robust financial management which was recently affirmed by reviews conducted by CIPFA and the LGA."

    Coun Ferguson replied that he would accept that explanation “if Coun Frew can point me to the Government’s written guarantee of underwriting all local authority investments, regardless of their merit or strength”. He added: “Instead, this confirms that the cabinet appears disinterested in where the council places its money.”


    https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/north-east-council-gets-back-15m-loaned-to-troubled-essex-authority-that-has-1-5bn-debt/ar-AA15zC4e?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=326aaf1ea06441c597b0c3065d77a4da
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842


    Tory-run Thurrock Council ditches £26m affordable homes scheme.

    A £26m scheme to build 82 affordable homes is to be dropped by Thurrock Council as they face a £469m budget shortfall.

    Thurrock Council declared itself in financial distress last week and issued a section 114 notice.

    On Friday it announced a scheme to convert former council offices in Grays into affordable homes had been ditched.

    It said a rise in interest rates would increase the cost of the scheme by another £11.3m.

    The Conservative-run authority said the housing project was “no longer feasible”, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

    Councillor Luke Spillman, who is responsible for housing, said the Ukraine war had added to the problem along with an interest rate increase for the scheme from 2.8% to 5%.

    “We’ll be going back to the drawing board in the new year and will evaluate all alternative options and bring new proposals forward in due course,” he said.

    “This is an unfortunate example of the impact inflation, energy costs and the war in Ukraine are having on local authority development projects across the country.”

    The viability of the scheme had been questioned earlier this year by the housing overview and scrutiny committee which feared profit margins were too tight.

    Leader of the Labour Group, John Kent, said: “It is inevitable that large schemes, such as this, won’t be able to go ahead.”

    He added he wanted to know from the Conservatives “which scheme will be scrapped next”.

    The council’s financial shortfall is three times larger than its annual budget and is one of the largest ever reported by a UK local authority.

    It is set to borrow nearly £850m from the government so it can pay back loans to other local authorities.

    The section 114 notice means a local authority is in financial distress, cannot balance its budget and is effectively bankrupt.
  • EssexphilEssexphil Member Posts: 8,670
    edited December 2022
    lucy4 said:



    Tory-run Thurrock Council ditches £26m affordable homes scheme.

    A £26m scheme to build 82 affordable homes is to be dropped by Thurrock Council as they face a £469m budget shortfall.

    Thurrock Council declared itself in financial distress last week and issued a section 114 notice.

    On Friday it announced a scheme to convert former council offices in Grays into affordable homes had been ditched.

    It said a rise in interest rates would increase the cost of the scheme by another £11.3m.

    The Conservative-run authority said the housing project was “no longer feasible”, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

    Councillor Luke Spillman, who is responsible for housing, said the Ukraine war had added to the problem along with an interest rate increase for the scheme from 2.8% to 5%.

    “We’ll be going back to the drawing board in the new year and will evaluate all alternative options and bring new proposals forward in due course,” he said.

    “This is an unfortunate example of the impact inflation, energy costs and the war in Ukraine are having on local authority development projects across the country.”

    The viability of the scheme had been questioned earlier this year by the housing overview and scrutiny committee which feared profit margins were too tight.

    Leader of the Labour Group, John Kent, said: “It is inevitable that large schemes, such as this, won’t be able to go ahead.”

    He added he wanted to know from the Conservatives “which scheme will be scrapped next”.

    The council’s financial shortfall is three times larger than its annual budget and is one of the largest ever reported by a UK local authority.

    It is set to borrow nearly £850m from the government so it can pay back loans to other local authorities.

    The section 114 notice means a local authority is in financial distress, cannot balance its budget and is effectively bankrupt.

    The gall of the man.

    They had a budget of just under £200 million a year from Central Government and Local Taxpayers. To run everything locally-schools, waste collection, roads, transport, etc.

    And they lent £860 million to some shyster in Swindon to buy solar farms. With no security. And have lost the lot.

    That really is not Putin's fault....

    They really need to own up to their criminal mismanagement.
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    Yet another £100,000 appointment not bad for a bankrupt organisation.

    Another new face at council will draw a six figure salary as senior officer phalanx continues to grow. Why does Thurrock have so many highly paid staff compared to neighbouring councils?

    Thurrock Council has added another highly-paid officer to its phalanx of senior staff at a time when it has been declared bankrupt.

    Though there has been no public announcement about his role, a retired former valuation and asset manager at Medway Council has been recruited as a interim director at Thurrock Council on a lucrative package, apparently far in excess of what he got for a similar job on the other side of the Thames.

    Noel Filmer has been appointed Thurrock's interim director for property, an announcement he made on the Linked In social media platform.

    Mr Filmer worked for Medway Council for almost 25 years and before that for Kent County Council for nine years

    His new role comes with a salary in the region of £100,000 a year, which is a sizable jump for Mr Filmer. The role he left at Medway last year was advertised at a salary of between £49,278 - £65,431 - an apparent increase in annual pay for Thurrock's new man of around 35 per cent!

    https://thurrock.nub.news/news/local-news/another-new-face-at-council-will-draw-a-six-figure-salary-as-senior-officer-phalanx-continues-to-grow-why-does-thurrock-have-so-many-highly-paid-staff-compared-to-neighbouring-councils-165133?fbclid=IwAR2Ojiyr5KiZ2BsKxP-gwRAJQR9EUiXzNzGcDya38GSrCPnnOIOuTjsQ5ts
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    Still some Tories laughed and joked as the full impact of council's financial failure was detailed in meeting. Sombre opposition benches delivered a condemnation, while senior officers spoke of tough choices ahead.

    https://thurrock.nub.news/news/local-news/still-some-tories-laughed-and-joked-as-the-full-impact-of-councils-financial-failure-was-detailed-in-meeting-sombre-opposition-benches-delivered-a-condemnation-while-senior-officers-spoke-of-tough-choices-ahead-165933?fbclid=IwAR2UdgRcdid6bRcB0JHqZl1diNrW3RT45FlFfNy6eQ5CRnVvv6qzO7TeVYs

    THURROCK Council's acting chief executive warned councillors they face 'some extremely difficult choices' as the depth of the borough's financial plight was once again outlined at an extraordinary meeting of the authority's full council on Monday, 9 January.

    "The provisional deficit for the 2023/24 budget is £452m against a budget of £153m. It is already clear that Thurrock Council cannot contain its expenditure budget in 2023/24 within available resources. This is a pattern that continues for later years.

    "Further assistance will be required including Capitalisation Directions covering future financial years. Indications are that Thurrock Council will need to seek extraordinary and dialogue has commenced."

    It is likely that Thurrock Council will have to borrow around a billion pounds from the government, to be paid back over several decades.

    This will mean a significant increase in the cost of council tax, probably over and above the government's recommended maximum of five per cent and there will be Draconian cuts in expenditure which will have a significant impact on many local services.

    Council leader Cllr Mark Coxshall was the only member of the ruling Conservative group to speak on the night as he and his party colleagues received a thorough lambasting from opposition members for allowing the situation to develop unchecked, despite many warnings from opposition members and a large number of media reports into the state of the council's finances.

    Independent councillor John Allen said he feared that the council would end up penalising residents who could not afford to pay the expected increases in council tax.

    Talking about the council's huge debt, he said: "Will this be recovered by our council tax by use of bailiffs, fines and imprisonment while senior officers walk free and remain in duty on full pay and allowances?

    He described the likely increase in council tax as 'unjust', saying: "Through the shameful actions of some within this council acting without due diligence, the costly mistakes will undoubtedly put the cost onto our residents

    "It's hugely unfair to expect Thurrock taxpayers and residents to bear the heavy burden of these mistakes."

    "The way this council has been run is shameful and you are expecting residents to make up for your mistakes. It is unfair and unjust."

    Labour's Cllr Martin Kerin said: "What we have heard is catastrophic for the resident of Thurrock. The debt will be settled on our residents for decades to come.

    "Because of Tory incompetence the debt has gone up £490,000 for every day the administration opposite has been in charge of our borough.

    "The real tragedy is that they were warned many times about this but refused to heed the warnings. A mixture of farce, hubris and downright arrogance.

    And another angry and charged Labour councillor, Victoria Holloway said: "In the nearly 12 years I have been a councillor, we knew there was something not right and it gives me no pleasure that we have been vindicated, I am angry and outraged and that doesn't get any less the more I read.

    "Our calls for financial transparency fell on deaf ears, the more secretive it became the more we feared and we were right."

    Other than Cllr Coxshall, no one from the Conservative ranks spoke and at the end of the meeting, as members rose, several appeared to be smirking and showed little contrition, most notably former leader Cllr Rob Gledhill, who was in charge through the years the debt was accrued, and noted Tory apologist Cllr Shane Ralph who stood up laughing and joking between themselves!
  • EssexphilEssexphil Member Posts: 8,670
    edited January 2023
    Thurrock will never be able to repay this.

    I suspect that Thurrock will cease to be an Independent Unitary Authority, and will revert to being a part of Essex County Council.

    I cannot understand why the Press are not making this story Headline News.

    Because it shows the massive risks any Council creates for its residents when it chooses to govern itself, outside of the independent County Councils.

    Exactly the same is true for "Academies"-much safer for schools to be protected by the County Council. No objection to Private Schools being run for profit-just not state schools.
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    Essexphil said:

    Thurrock will never be able to repay this.

    I suspect that Thurrock will cease to be an Independent Unitary Authority, and will revert to being a part of Essex County Council.

    I cannot understand why the Press are not making this story Headline News.

    Because it shows the massive risks any Council creates for its residents when it chooses to govern itself, outside of the independent County Councils.

    Exactly the same is true for "Academies"-much safer for schools to be protected by the County Council. No objection to Private Schools being run for profit-just not state schools.

    Exactly this, it makes you wonder if it was a Labour run council whether it would've been reported differently,though why the Labour leaning Press haven't gone to town on it is also a mystery.
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    Thurrock Council will be able to raise its council tax by up to 10 per cent following blundering administration's failed investment gamble and financial collapse.

    Thurrock Council has been given the green light by the government to increase council tax by up to ten per cent - without having to go to residents for a referendum.

    Councils are normally only allowed to raise tax by five per cent. Should they want any more, they are supposed to ask local people via a poll, but after Conservative councillors on the cash-strapped authority went cap-in-hand to the government seeking a dispensation, it has been given approval to add up to an extra five per cent without a vote.

    At an extraordinary full council meeting last month leader Cllr Mark Coxshall told members of the plan to seek the right to scrap a referendum.

    Thurrock Council's Labour opposition leader Cllr John Kent opposed the recommendation to increase council tax without a local referendum.

    Opposing the application to government, he said it was wrong that the residents of the borough would have to pay for the mistakes of Conservative councillors, adding: "We are being asked to agree to raise council tax by more than the 5% referendum limit without holding that local referendum. I want to be very clear, the Labour group will not be supporting that recommendation."

    However, despite additional opposition from independent members, the Conservatives had the majority to drive the vote through and the application was submitted.

    However much the tax does go up, it will be nowhere near enough to meet the shortfall. The council is planning a programme of cuts to local services, driving up local charges and proposes significant staff redundancies. It is also looking to sell off council-owned buildings and land plus other assets at its disposal.
  • EssexphilEssexphil Member Posts: 8,670
    edited February 2023
    There is a beautiful symmetry to this.

    Thurrock Council have broken the rules by these colossal and idiotic loans.

    And so-they are allowed to break the Rules by increasing Council Tax beyond the legal limit, without triggering the required referendum.

    Disregarding that raising an extra £5-10 million is not going to put much of a dent in what looks like a £1.5 Billion black hole...
  • EssexphilEssexphil Member Posts: 8,670
    edited February 2023
    It's not just Thurrock.

    The current Rules state that there must be a local referendum before Council Taxes are permitted to increase by more than 4.99%.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-64541351

    So-we now have an unelected Government, that succeeded an unelected Government, that have decreed that they have the power to overrule any requirement for local voting, as well as national. Disregarding the legal requirements.
  • EssexphilEssexphil Member Posts: 8,670
    Last rant (at least for today!) on this subject.

    The Government is ignoring an obvious conflict of interest in relation to this.

    I expect that the residents of Thurrock (and Croydon) would have insisted on 1 thing happening before agreeing to this Council Tax hike.

    Fresh local elections. Whereupon every single sitting Tory would have been voted out.
  • lucy4lucy4 Member Posts: 7,842
    Fury as thousands sign petition protesting bankrupt London council's 15% tax grab after three crisis-hit authorities were given all-clear to hike levy by more than 5% without a referendum amid cost of living crisis.

    Croydon council has been given permission to raise council tax by 15%.

    The thrice-bankrupt council last went into administration in November.

    Thousands of locals have signed a petition demanding reversal of decision.

    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11726423/Fury-thousands-sign-petition-protesting-bankrupt-London-councils-15-tax-grab.html
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