Stoke-on-Trent Council criticized for £2 million consultant expenditure

Opposition leaders have accused council officials of failing to “keep the Stoke pound in Stoke” following a £2 million expenditure on consultants. The costs were calculated by Labour leaders at Stoke-on-Trent City Council after their assumption of power in the local elections held in May 2023. Nevertheless, in addressing the allegations from Conservative opposition leaders, they asserted that their spending on external consultants was lower than that of the Tories during their previous tenure. Alastair Watson, the cabinet member for finance, additionally informed a full council meeting last Thursday that the council’s engagement of consultants had decreased since Labour assumed control. Watson confirmed that the authority’s expenditure on consultants totaled £2.39 million from June 2023 to October 2024, involving 28 firms contracted for 62 assignments. He further noted that this figure contrasts with the approximately £5 million spent on consultants by the then-Tory council in the 2022/23 financial year. Watson stated, “In 2022/23, [the Conservatives] had three times the number of consultants, who I’m sure came from all over the place.” Nevertheless, opposition leader Daniel Jellyman expressed the view that two projects in Stoke and Packmoor, with a combined cost of £50,000, could have been handled by local enterprises. In reply, Watson explained that specialist consultants were engaged for particular projects “where the city council lacks the necessary expertise” and when the need was for a defined duration. Jellyman urged the council to release additional information regarding its use of consultants, specifically including the location of each company, asserting that this would enable the public to ascertain whether the commitment to “keep the Stoke pound in Stoke” was being fulfilled. Watson emphasized that the overall decrease in consultant expenditure signified that less capital was being directed to businesses situated outside Stoke-on-Trent. The total expenditure since June 2023 comprised £2.19 million in capital spending, which encompassed externally funded projects, with an additional £203,852 sourced from the council’s general fund. The housing, regeneration, and operations directorate recorded the largest individual expenditure on consultants, amounting to £948,574 of the total sum. The public health directorate allocated £753,548, while the resources directorate spent £664,020. This report was compiled by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which provides coverage of councils and other public service entities. For further updates, follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X, and Instagram. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external websites. Information regarding our external linking policy is available.