Christmas Lights go-ahead despite budget bungle
This week’s full Town Council meeting was told that the £9,200 cost had been omitted from this year’s budget, with just £2,000 listed, leaving a £7,200 shortfall.
The £9,200 cost mirrors the same amount spent last year when Christmas was saved by a last-minute decision to install new lights and to fix the decaying anchor points.
So, the quotation for this year came as a shock to councillors with the Town Mayor, Cllr Phil Owen, saying: “What was spent last year included the new replacement lights as well so the fact that it is the same payment is rather disappointing, but it was always going to be more than was in the budget.
“And, I remind everybody that we had a terrible panic last time as we left it to the last minute before we approved the lights and we came very close to being the only town anywhere without Christmas lights. But it is a large expenditure.”
Town Clerk, Richard Williams, who only took office earlier this year, explained that he “wasn’t here during the budget setting process so I am unaware as to why they set the budget so low knowing that the cost was going to be the same”.
But he said approval was needed urgently in order to start the work on October 6.
Cllr Morag Bailey, Chair of the Finance Committee, explained what had happened: “I apologise as Chair of Finance, but we were advised by the Town Clerk at the time that the budget was not needed. She set the budget at what she thought would be needed.”
Councillors approved a virement which means the shortfall can be accessed from another budget with Mr Williams pointing out: “Over the last three years, the Christmas Lights and Winter Festival budgets have all overspent by considerable sums. This has been an ongoing issue for several years.”
He said that £10,000 should be earmarked for next year’s budget.
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