Southwark Council Splurged Over £3m on Indefinitely Paused Rooftop Developments

Southwark Council spent above £3m on its paused rooftop development programme so far, according to Liberal Democrat research on Thursday.

The Southwark Liberal Democrats learnt from internal correspondence that the authority splashed this money on costs such as consultancy fees.

While, the group also discovered that construction had not begun on any of the council's rooftop development projects.

This information came from an FOI stating the council spent £3.7m on the programme.

However, the Southwark Liberal Democrats came to understand from internal correspondence that the actual cost of the projects was around £3.1m.

The authority revealed in July that it would halt its rooftop extensions on existing council blocks.

It explained it made this decision after listening to residents’ views and having taken into consideration more stringent building regulations, alongside rising construction costs.

Commenting, Cllr Victor Chamberlain, Southwark Liberal Democrat Group Leader said:

“Splashing over £3m on an indefinitely paused rooftop development programme calls into serious question Labour's decision-making when it comes to taxpayer money. There can be a place for rooftop developments amid Southwark's housing crisis, but recklessly spending millions on a programme that might now never actually happen makes me wonder if they ever thought these projects through. We are in the middle of a cost-of-living emergency and Labour must avoid flip-flopping on future plans by ensuring from the start that any undertakings are a responsible use of residents’ money.”