Think of a number, add a string of noughts and charge it to Southend Council – £100,000 lift repair at the Civic Centre, £100,000 leaky roof on a brand new building near the pier.

A million plus Government transport grant, stupid road humps and mystery roadworks. A costly Cliffs lift not functioning. Hundreds of thousands on consultancy plans and schemes that end up in the bin. Quotes of £50million for cliffs subsidence repair abandoned.

Umpteen thousand on consultancy for the pier with no change after ten years. The airport given away at a peppercorn rent for 150 years, is not up for sale at £50million.

Week after week the Echo reveals another crashed scheme from the council.

Now, us taxpayers could be lumbered with a million plus bill for the pathetic Pier Hill alterations.

Nameless consultancy firms are feasting off councillors’ inability to make decisions. Neither accept any responsibility for gross failures.

Len Lierens
Southchurch Road
Southend