ANGER flared in Southend Council chamber when councillors clashed over the events leading up to the controversial closure of York Road Market.

Independent councillor Martin Terry said the structural report, on which the closure had been based, was about a year old, and not a new one, produced after the September cabinet meeting.

He said: “When I spoke to the surveyors, I was told the reference number was from 2008.

“There are a lot of things I am not happy about and I believe there should be a full investigation.

“We should not be making this type of decision on information which is a year old.”

Town clerk Rob Tinlin said the report on the condition of the 90-year-old building had been requested immediately after the cabinet meeting in September, and action had been taken to close the market as soon as it was received.

Council leader Nigel Holdcroft reiterated closing York Road Market was the right decision.

He said: “I can tell you as a personal injury lawyer we would have been in serious trouble if somebody had got hurt, and we had not taken the action we did after receiving the report.”

Labour councillor Stephen George said when he joined the council in 1999, traders at the market had been concerned about its condition.

He added: “You appear to have done nothing about the condition of the market since then. I am also concerned much of the report is based on assumptions.

“This whole issue should have been handled differently. We should carry out the urgent repairs now, and reopen the market as soon as possible.”

Andrew Moring, councillor responsible for support services, said: “There come a time when a building comes to the end of its useful life, and this has now happened at York Road Market.”

l The council has agreed to postpone any decision on the future of the market, until after a consultation on the need for such a facility in the town, and where it could be accommodated.