Error in officer report sees councillors consider extra £95m in unnecessary funding for road project

Councillors at Shropshire Council earlier this month voted to approve a draft capital strategy that mistakenly designated an extra £95m in funding for a road works project.

Councillors voted to approve the draft strategy at a council meeting on 21 September.

The strategy listed a series of decisions in relation to capital projects, including the suggestion that £95m in additional funding would be needed to complete the council's proposed Northwest Relief Road (NWRR) project.

The report's content outlined that councillors should note the considerations concerning the new road, which will run along the northern edge of the town of Shrewsbury.

The vote did not approve any funding.

The erroneous figure was the result of an "officer mistake," according to the council.

James Walton, Shropshire Council's Executive Director of Resources, said: "This figure should have been removed as it was a remnant of working documents whereby finance officers had incorporated an extremely rough estimate based on high levels of inflation, assumptions about contingencies and delays.

"This was in effect a 'holding' figure, often used by finance officers when modelling potential costs or budget projections and was not derived from consultation or information from the project team, or operational officers involved in the proposed NWRR."

The council must now amend the single figure and recirculate the two documents which contained the error to all councillors to clarify the situation.

It must also commit to bringing full clarification to full council in December.

Adam Carey