Showustheevidence

I respond to Councillor Phil Saxton’s letter in last week’s Post regarding “Case for £45m leisure centre”.

It is not unusual or for the first time to read such a letter or comment from an incumbent councillor just before a local council election so it is appropriate we “shine a light on his comments” supported by a question like “where is your evidence, Mr Saxton?” He makes the point that a new leisure centre in Ayr Town Centre is the best solution to regenerate the town. As someone who sat through many meetings of the Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Group on Town Centres where this idea was floated, it seemed devoid of any real facts or evidence and I am bound to ask if Mr Saxton and the council have talked to the likes of Dundee City Council (the Olympia Pool is closed) or East Ayrshire re Irvine to substantiate his claim. There is none.

Where is his evidence, from elsewhere, that the way a local economy works suggest that Town Centres are changing from retail to leisure. He suggests ‘we need to make sure we get the best bang for our buck.’ So let’s test that. Firstly on capital expenditure, this leisure centre started life at £37 million then rose to almost £41 million and more recently to £45 million while doing away with the sports hall and one of the main pools. I still have had no confirmation to my Freedom of Information (FOI) requests as to where are the capital costs of the likely 30/40×20 metre steel piles to hold it up, or the cost of water supply or the costs of the car park access etc. other than to be advised they were not available at the time. We now have the likely cost of removing a methane gas threat to the site. How much? So in capital cost terms, Mr Saxton, what exactly is the capital cost of this building and where is the evidence ? Why is it being rushed through without data such as that being available? It, after all, cannot be approved until there is full financial disclosure! And in terms of the “bang for our buck”, the shareholders, i.e the local council taxpayer, has the right to see the projected profit and loss statement in terms of the operation if and when it is up and running. Again, I have requested that projection for the first five years profit and loss statements in another FOI. I have had NO answer.Where is the financial evidence Mr Saxton? You are supposed to provide full financial disclosure before proceeding so where is this detail? The councillor suggests this facility as proposed has been subject to rigorous consultation with user groups and the general public which will provide a much needed well-being facility that people want. Let us see the evidence of that rigorous consultation that supports that statement and how is that reconciled with the fact that 3500 people declared against it in an independent petition? I am afraid Mr Saxton’s letter like the case for the Leisure Centre bears no evidence and has more holes than a sieve. Fill the holes with real evidence, Mr Saxton, or reap what you sow. Better still vote it down until you can provide some real and meaningful evidence in public. Chic Brodie, Ayr