Crushed by bureaucracy
In the news this week:
Cost of Olympics venues spirals by another £295m- "The London Olympics were hit by a new costs crisis today. The bill for the aquatics centre is set to double to £150 million while the budget for the stadium will rise from £280million to £500 million. Balfour Beatty is the only remaining bidder to build the aquatics centre after two shortlisted rivals withdrew." (Evening Standard 4.10.07)
£10m for Diana inquests- "THE total cost of the inquests into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Fayed could top £10m, including more than £2.7m in legal fees. Most of the cost will be met by the taxpayer... conservative estimates based on the 2003 Hutton inquiry, which lasted 10 weeks and cost £1.7m, suggest the Diana hearing will cost at least £5.3m. But the overall cost will rise to at least £9m, once last year’s £3.7m Stevens inquiry is taken into account." (Times 30.9.07)
NHS redundancies cost another £82.89m- " MASSIVE pay cheques and astronomical pensions for NHS bosses in the East of England have come under attack. Millions are being paid out as the region's NHS faces a total debt of £152 million and Cambridgeshire Primary Care Trust battles against a £52 million cash crisis and the axing of services and jobs... In total 764 people were made redundant or took early retirement at a cost of £82.89 million." (Cambridge Evening News 21.9.07)
Yet another £3.4m on NHS redundancies- "HEALTH bosses in York and North Yorkshire have spent £3.4 million on severance costs for staff in the latest NHS shake-up... The highest pay-out is a pension worth £369,753 for Paul Farrimond, the former director of mental health, at Hambleton and Richmondshire PCT... Staff made redundant can work again for the NHS after one month." (The Press 8.9.07)
Bureaucrats sting local carnival for £3000- "RUMBLINGS around Newton Poppleford that 2007 may see the end of the village's annual carnival could not be verified this week by committee chairman Roger Hart."I know there have been rumblings but I cannot answer them. I don't know what is happening." It now costs around £3,000 to stage the event, pay for signage, prizes and insurance. Mr Hart added that... officialdom and the rising cost of public liability insurance was a threat to the future of carnivals around the region." (Exmouth Journal 4.10.07)
Cost of Olympics venues spirals by another £295m- "The London Olympics were hit by a new costs crisis today. The bill for the aquatics centre is set to double to £150 million while the budget for the stadium will rise from £280million to £500 million. Balfour Beatty is the only remaining bidder to build the aquatics centre after two shortlisted rivals withdrew." (Evening Standard 4.10.07)
£10m for Diana inquests- "THE total cost of the inquests into the deaths of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Fayed could top £10m, including more than £2.7m in legal fees. Most of the cost will be met by the taxpayer... conservative estimates based on the 2003 Hutton inquiry, which lasted 10 weeks and cost £1.7m, suggest the Diana hearing will cost at least £5.3m. But the overall cost will rise to at least £9m, once last year’s £3.7m Stevens inquiry is taken into account." (Times 30.9.07)
NHS redundancies cost another £82.89m- " MASSIVE pay cheques and astronomical pensions for NHS bosses in the East of England have come under attack. Millions are being paid out as the region's NHS faces a total debt of £152 million and Cambridgeshire Primary Care Trust battles against a £52 million cash crisis and the axing of services and jobs... In total 764 people were made redundant or took early retirement at a cost of £82.89 million." (Cambridge Evening News 21.9.07)
Yet another £3.4m on NHS redundancies- "HEALTH bosses in York and North Yorkshire have spent £3.4 million on severance costs for staff in the latest NHS shake-up... The highest pay-out is a pension worth £369,753 for Paul Farrimond, the former director of mental health, at Hambleton and Richmondshire PCT... Staff made redundant can work again for the NHS after one month." (The Press 8.9.07)
Bureaucrats sting local carnival for £3000- "RUMBLINGS around Newton Poppleford that 2007 may see the end of the village's annual carnival could not be verified this week by committee chairman Roger Hart."I know there have been rumblings but I cannot answer them. I don't know what is happening." It now costs around £3,000 to stage the event, pay for signage, prizes and insurance. Mr Hart added that... officialdom and the rising cost of public liability insurance was a threat to the future of carnivals around the region." (Exmouth Journal 4.10.07)
Total for week- £391,293,000