Anger at £200,000 plans to expand Town Hall Canteen

9.00.00am GMT Tue 3rd Mar 2009

Labour in Lambeth want to see the staff canteen expanded rather than boilers repaired in libraries in youth clubs

Hard-pressed residents in Lambeth have reacted angrily to news that the Labour Council is to spend nearly £200,000 on refurbishing the Town Hall in Brixton.

Papers obtained by Liberal Democrat Councillors have uncovered the £200,000 spending spree on the Town Hall. They include a move for the "communications" team into a bunker under the Town Hall and a lavish expansion plan for the staff canteen among other things.

Liberal Democrats have objected to the plan and asked for it to be be presented to a public committee but so far the council has refused to confirm or deny whether it will consult residents on the matters.

But with tenants reeling from a 17% rent hike, home help charges raised to be the highest in London and libraries and youth clubs closing for lack of maintenance insiders say that no-one will be sympathetic to refurbishments of the Town Hall for pampered bureaucrats.

The proposals include a list of the schemes that the council considers so vital that £198,319 must be spent before March:

• That communication move to the basement offices

• That staff in the basement move to the second floor

• That Asset Strategy move to Hambrook House

• That the out of hours services currently based in Hambrook House move to the Town Hall

• That the canteen area is extended and improved

• That a multi faith prayer room is created

• That new showers and lockers are created for out of hours staff and manual staff based in the building

"To my mind spending £200,000 refurbishing the Town Hall in the middle of an economic recession is an insult to taxpayers in Lambeth," said Cllr Ashley Lumsden Leader of the opposition Liberal Democrats on Lambeth Council.

"Lambeth's libraries and youth centres are suffering from regular closures because the council has failed to maintain the boilers properly saying it can't afford the cash. But when it comes to extending the staff canteen then suddenly £200,000 can be found!"

"It is yet more evidence that Labour Councillors in Lambeth are completely out of touch. They have no understanding of how the recession is affecting local residents. They're happy to put up rents, home-help charges and parking fines and spend the cash on refurbishing the Town Hall," added Cllr Lumsden.