John Whitehouse

It seems that the’SPARK’ public transport scheme for Warwick District is a dead duck. Launched in a fanfare of publicity by the County Council 3 years ago, it succeeded in winning potential government funding of nearly £13 million to deliver a “step-change in the quality of public transport in Warwick District”.

Now, because of the failure of the Stratford Park & Ride scheme to stem operating losses, a similar scheme for Warwick District is being dropped, and with it the whole of the SPARK scheme.

The Conservative Cabinet tried to slip a decision through without discussion back in October, but at my insistence and with the support of other Liberal Democrat and Labour members the matter received a proper public airing at the Warwick Area Committee last night.

It’s been a costly exercise to achieve nothing - some £300,000 to put together the winning bid to government, and then another £50,000 on consultants’ fees etc in deciding to drop it!

The matter now goes back to the Cabinet for final decision, but the outcome is clear. The Conservatives claim that the intended benefits of SPARK are being or will be delivered in other ways, and at no greater cost to WCC council taxpayers, but I and other opposition members are left feeling that a great opportunity has been squandered.

At last night’s meeting of the Warwick Area Committee, we saw the strange spectacle of all but one of the Conservative councillors voting for an amendment which would have directly contravened the County Council’s speed limit policies, which were re-stated and re-confirmed by the ruling Conservative Cabinet only last year. Even a Cabinet member supported the amendment!

Liberal Democrat and Labour members of the committee supported the officers’ recommendations in line with current policies, as did one of the Conservatives - to her credit as she clearly came under pressure from her colleagues. The vote was tied, and then decided in favour of current policies on the casting vote of the Lib Dem chair.

 I wonder what the Cabinet Member for the Environment will make of the indiscipline of his Conservative colleagues?