WARRINGTON Borough Council is to press ahead with talks with a major, national planning consultant over a possible “commercial partnership” for planning and building control services in the borough.
But no decision has yet been made – and there will be consultation with users of the services before any final decision is made at a future meeting of the council’s executive board.
This emerged from a special meeting of the executive board to discuss a “call-in” by Labour councillors concerned at an alleged lack of consultation, financial risks, future relations with workers and trade unions and a lack of transparency.
Scrutiny chiefs subsequently decided the principles of good decision making had been breached.
Coun Bob Barr, (pictured) the executive member for planning and regeneration said if all information had been appended to all executive board reports, as suggested, it would have run to hundreds of pages.
But he accepted they should have been made available in electronic form.
He said informal discussions had taken place with some service users but he believed it would be “excessive” to consult the general public.
However all regular users of the development control and building control services should be consulted.
Coun Barr stressed that no decision had yet been made to enter into a commercial partnership.
Any such decision would be for a future meeting of the executive board.
But he did not accept that that a further report on the results of consultation need go to scrutiny chiefs as all members of the council would have sight of information provide to the executive board..
