The council’s fantasy is all a guessing game for us
Think of a number between one and a million – then double it.
Multiply it by your mother’s date of birth – subtract your father’s date of birth – then divide it by the number of sausages you have in your fridge.
Got it? The answer should be 40 million.
It’s not exactly how South Ayrshire Council got the figure of £ 40 million for the construction of the proposed new ‘ Arran Mall’ leisure complex.
But hey, it’s pretty damn close! Former MSP Chic Brodie asked SAC through the Freedom of Information Act where the £ 40 million figure came from?
His reply is a sea of gobbledegook with the occasional reference to “legally privileged” information.
But the bottom line is . . . they don’t really know.
And considering “a tender has not yet been undertaken to appoint a contactor to the project . . .” - how could they possibly know?
It’s a wild guess.
Where did the Council get their £ 8 to £ 9 million figure for the redevelopment of The Citadel?
Er . . . well that one is “legally privileged” as well!
Another wild guess.
Well, SAC say The Citadel is “not fit for purpose”. Surely they must have detailed information on how that was decided?
Er . . no. We’re not giving you any information on that one either! That’s not a wild guess . . . it’s wild! And all this from the SNP led council that pledged you “openness and transparency” when elected in 2017.
I was going to finish with “you couldn’t make this up”.
But that’s exactly what SAC are doing!