Incompetence or Worse? Chapter 3

"Something" they say, "is rotten in Denmark."
Well that's as may be, but there's certainly something strange going on at Craven district council (CDC).
Only a few short weeks ago councillors were told that the £340,000 offered by Bentley's for a prestigious greenfield site on Gargrave Road of around two acres, was the best that could be obtained for that site, and a very fair price indeed.
And so those councillors accepted that advice, advice given in a document written by one Jonathan Kerr, whose name crops up not infrequently in this website.

Some may have wondered why a 'non-local' company, one headquartered in Chicago, should have given the valuation, and not a local company such as say Dacre son and Hartley.
Some might have wondered why there weren't two or more valuations.
Some may have wondered about the reason given, that of employment, when Craven does not have an employment problem.
Indeed HML have to import most of their staff from Keighley and Lancashire, such is the shortage of workers!

Others might have wondered, as did the editor of the Craven Herald, why, if the price was right, it should be kept a secret.

And now we see that Dacre Son and Hartley have indeed given an offer for this land, at twice the price accepted by the policy committee from Bentleys!

The letter confirming that offer may be seen here.

So just what IS going on at CDC?
Why was the price offered kept secret?
Is one single officer, one living in West Yorkshire, responsible for who determines the value of our assets?
Would CDC really allow such a stupid system, one which is incredibly open to mistake or abuse, to exist when dealing with valuable assets?

The reality is that they probably would.
It's but a few years ago when our council houses, all 1,540 of them, were sold at the give away price of just over £5,000 each.
Not to the tenants, but to a newly formed private company, who proceeded to allow them to be sold at an average of 10 times that price, and now at full market value.
A company which has declared itself to be a charity (although not appearing on the Charities Commission website) and thereby exempt from the Freedom of Information Act.

Of course CDC had a 'Clawback' mechanism whereby any huge gains such as this could be realised, at least in part, by the council, didn't they?

You wish!

And so Paakwa has this plea to make, to all councillors at CDC.

Please don't accept everything you're told by officers of the council, especially when it comes to disposing of our assets.
Please question and re-question, especially every time that secrecy is declared essential.
Demand to know why 'cloak and dagger' techniques are necessary, and why the public, the owners of those assets, should not be told the truth, and better still consulted.

Please.