Allotment dispute clocks up £8,000 in taxpayers' money

The disagreement started in 2010 when Wash Common Allotment tenant, Simon Kirby started civil proceedings against the town council. Mr Kirby argued that the council’s increase in allotment rent was unlawful.
At the time, the town council increased allotment rents by 47 per cent from £4.71 per pole per annum to £6.94 per pole per annum. This would have cost Mr Kirby an extra £20 per year.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) brought a criminal case against the town council’s chief executive, Graham Hunt, after Mr Kirby alleged that Mr Hunt refused his request to see the minutes of an urgency sub-committee meeting at the town hall on February 10, 2011. But the case was dropped by the CPS because it was not brought in time.
Following a request by the Newbury Weekly News, the town council has announced this week that it has spent a total of £7,796.50 of taxpayers’ money to fight these claims. This amount excludes time spent by officers on the cases.
Both Mr Kirby and the town council have expressed regret at the amount of public money wasted on the disputes.
Mr Kirby, who has contributed £500 towards the town council’s costs in the civil case, said: “I think they should all resign because they cannot justify spending that amount of money in the public interest.
“Their position is either groundless or they’re utterly incompetent. If they’re right why haven’t they evicted me?”
In response, leader of the town council, Julian Swift-Hook (Lib Dem, Pyle Hill) said the council has already served a notice to Mr Kirby to quit his allotment, but the Wash Common resident has refused.
“We have reached the end of the line. How many final chances can you give somebody?” Mr Swift-Hook said.
Mr Hunt added: “We have no choice but to continue to defend such allegations until Mr Kirby understands that the allotment rent increase that he is disputing was legally and reasonably made, which is what we have repeatedly told him.”
Meanwhile, the town council’s schedule of payments for December 2011 to April 2012 has been published.
Among the payments were 63,934.89 to English Landscape for various works to the town’s 45 open spaces, 15 children’s play areas, six allotments and two cemeteries.
A total of £25,476.50 funded the annual cleansing bill for the Wharf public toilets and market traders store room, £1,808.40 was paid to Gardner Leader for surveys into cracks found at Victoria Park, with £1,152 going towards the funding of 13 new grit bins in the town.