COUNCIL officials have been stripped of the power to independently award large contracts in the wake of the multi-million pound Calderdale dustbins fiasco.
Instead, a top-level team of councillors will supervise the work until a new procurement system has been set up.
And Calderdale councillors will consider a number of resolutions relating to the council's waste contract when they meet tonight (Octobe
r 1, 6pm).
All members of the council met on Monday night to discuss the findings of the Waste Contract Investigation Report, produced by Price Waterhouse Coopers.
They agreed to submit a three-part recommendation for discussion at full council tonight:
l That the Chief Executive (as Head of Paid Service) make urgent investigations into the conduct and capability of officers and advisors identified in the report (including those about to leave the employment of the council) and take action as he considers appropriate and report back on actions taken to a meeting of Cabinet in December.
l That the recommendations produced by Price Waterhouse Coopers in their report be turned into an Action Plan by the Chief Executive to be reported to Cabinet when ready, the progress of which is to be tracked through the Corporate Services Scrutiny Panel
l That an all-party Procurement Cabinet Working Party be established to oversee the procurement process (of contracts for services over £60,000) until Cabinet determines the Working Party is no longer required.
On Monday night the meeting was told by Peter Coles (Lib-Dem, Luddenden Foot) that changes to the £50 million refuse contract, revealed last week, might have added one per cent to council tax bills – nearly £6 million over seven years.
He said: "I was surprised, disappointed, amazed and annoyed that our officers withheld information from councillors and I don't understand why."
Labour group leader Tim Swift (Town) said problems with the refuse contract raised questions about council leadership and decision making.
He said: "Action should be taken to identify whether individual officers have made serious errors.
"It is also right that the council's political leadership must be answerable for their actions over the award of the contract."
Management consultants PricewaterhouseCoopers found that a group of senior officers altered the terms of the contract without reference to councillors.
Community recyclers Kerbside subsequently closed.
Colin Raistrick (Ind, Hipperholme and Lightcliffe) said: "The procurement system is a dinosaur.
"We hit an iceberg and before we hit it no one was listening to the cries for help."
Graham Reason (Con, Northowram and Shelf), who has cabinet responsibility for refuse, said he had no professional knowledge of waste collection.
"And I had no reason to believe the advice from officers or our consultant was anything for me to judge," he said.
He said that at a meeting to discuss the contract he was "just an observer. I took no part in evaluating anything."
Meanwhile, Kerbside Calderdale said the fallout from the fiasco was far from over. Paul Brannigan, of Kerbside, said: "Like the people of Calderdale, we were the direct victims of the chaotic tendering progress and lining up a few scapegoats to carry the can will not get councillors and officials off the hook."
