I’m often amazed at just how stupid Kent Tories think we are or perhaps how stupid they are and we are to elect them.
Example Kier the building firm have been awarded business worth 600 million pounds to build 36 secondary schools in Kent, and it just so happens that Kier have been fined 17 odd million for “cover pricing” by the office of fair trading which is basically understood by many to be what we would more likely call price fixing.
Therefore its rather extraordinary that Kent Council is not about to review the massive contracts it has with Kier even more remarkable are the comments made by Paul Carter Kent Councils Conservative Leader take a gander at this load of tosh from Kent on Sundays story.
“In the good days before the global recession when firms were working flat out, contractors were very worried about not filling in tender documents for fear of being struck off future lists.
“I don’t know the details of the cases, some companies have been found wanting in terms of collaboration through the tender process, which is not good or right.
“But I have not read the details… It is a highly complex area.”
Cllr Carter stood by the company and said he was “enormously” confident.
Now I’m also enormously confident that not reviewing contracts when a firm has been found to have been involved in misleading tenders smells like a week old fish grilled on hot radiator.
Still I’m sure Cllr Paul Carters spot on and right as ever, just as he has been with the in no way negligent Iceland Banks issue, as we all know a cheque for 50 million quid from Icelandic banks is on its way because Kent Tories have told us so.
You may recall when Clr Carter and co awarded themselves massive rises in their allowance he compare the rise to pay in the construction industry since he had many years experience of this. His interest declaration make interesting reading since he declares that the companies he is director of/manages trade in London. The first one listed Lodgemist is a construction company registered in Kent. Has it never done business in Kent? Do any of his companies tender for KCC work?
ReplyDeleteIts not supprising that he and KCC take the view that its all right then to do business with corrupt companies.
As regards the £50 million of our money, Idoubt if e will ever see a penny of it back..ask the people of Iceland,they will never agree as it will come out of their own pockets if returned.
ReplyDeleteOn a slightly smaller scale, and apologies for being far from Kent but here in Carmarthenshire there is a similar story, my letter as below was printed in the local paper but so far only a stony silence from our Chief Exec. "I notice that the Lincoln based Simon's Group has been fined nearly £1m for taking part in illegal tender rigging by the Office of Fair Trading. As the preferred developers for the £75m St Catherine's Walk, Could we please have the assurances from the Council and Chief Executive Mark James that nothing like this happened with the tendering process in Carmarthen? I seem to remember that there were other tenders at the time which were dismissed without reference to full council, and will Mark James still be enthusiasticaly endorsing the company in their brochure in the future?"
ReplyDeleteIt is note here that Mr James was endorsing the company well before they were awarded the contract.
Hi Tony
ReplyDeleteA couple of posts back I told you a little story of how an employment exchange clerk at Ipswich, years ago, could cop a thirty quid backhander for each worker he could force off dole to work at a local chicken packer ?
I wonder if you see what I did there ?
That fiddle of yeteryear is now George Osborne's policy revealed at the tory conference.
Paying an enterprise to do what the public servants should be doing ?
Guised as "Providers paid by results for the number they get off dole".
Whether the Chioken paccker pays direct or via taxation he pays ?
And if private enterprise is needed to do the public sector job will the tories sack all the Jobcentre staff (preferably without pension or compensation as they have had a good innings as public secrtor parasites) to cut the public sector and only pay the private sector by results ?
Dear Dicky Card,
ReplyDeleteDo you actually work for a living?
Mwah xxx