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Council spending on 'propaganda' criticised
January 28, 2009 11:31 AM
Liberal Democrat research has revealed that B&NES Council spent £115,000 on publicity relating to the Bath Transport Package over 9 months in 2008.
How much has this leaflet cost?
However it is not clear whether this even covers all the leaflets the Council was putting out last year since the latest leaflet, which had the headline "Tired of Traffic Jams?" was delivered in December 2008.
Opposition Councillors have criticised the Conservative-led Cabinet for their decision to spend this amount on 'propaganda' and yet refusing to carry out proper research into the alternative routes for the controversial Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) road.
Councillor Caroline Roberts (Newbridge) said, "The Council has squandered over £100k of tax payers' cash on leaflets and other propaganda, yet they are still refusing to spend anything at all on research into the alternatives to the BRT.
"The Council has already admitted that the first batch of leaflets were more or less thrown together and I believe they have only served to confuse and alarm residents.
"What's worse is that two different departments in the Council are apparently putting out their own leaflets, but not talking to one another. It's no wonder residents are confused!
"I will certainly be asking further questions at the next Cabinet meeting - on February 4th - to get to the bottom of this issue."
Councillor Andrew Furse (Kingsmead) added, "The Council is appearing increasingly desperate to sell this clapped out BRT scheme to the public - using propaganda and spin to try and convince us that it's a goer. Their latest PR claims that the scheme is supported by various transport organisations, however you only need to look at the letters page of the Chron to see how deep the opposition to the BRT road runs."
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