Pressure mounts on the Cabinet to provide funding for a stadium
By West Briton | Thursday, May 24, 2012, 07:15
PRESSURE is mounting on Cornwall Council's Cabinet to provide funding for a multimillion-pound stadium in what would be a highly controversial move.
The West Briton understands a majority of the Cabinet is in favour, and could give the nod to invest £10 million in the £24 million scheme.
The full council voted against proceeding with funding the stadium but the nine-member Cabinet can ignore this vote when making the final decision.
Sporting celebrities including former England captain Phil Vickery have joined campaign groups and project partner Truro and Penwith College to push for the funding to be approved.
The council had always insisted public money would not be used for the project, but on May 10 news broke that the consortium behind the scheme – developer Inox, the Cornish Pirates and Truro and Penwith College – said it could not secure enough private-sector funding to carry it forward.
The Stadium for Cornwall campaign group said this week it had "always sought to get co-operation between the council and the private sector to deliver the best they can for Cornwall".
Truro resident Lance Dyer wrote to every councillor: "I urge you to rethink your views and realise the benefits a stadium would provide for Cornwall and do all you can to urge the Cabinet to look at the question in detail, consider all options including ... funding and do all you can to push for a decent facility in this the year of the London Olympics."
Truro and Penwith College has agreed to put £2 million into the scheme and would relocate its business centre to the stadium. A spokesman for the college said: "It's too good an idea for us to simply give up, and if we can continue to work in partnership towards making it a reality we shall do so.
"It remains our view that a great amount of Cornish potential would be unleashed by this project and that this stadium is something Cornwall both needs and deserves.
We shall continue to make the case for it."
The story has hit the national headlines and Mr Vickery, himself a Cornishman, told the Daily Telegraph: "It just seems so short-sighted for the council to veto any financial support. Cornwall has always needed a stadium to serve the county, not just now, although the need now is greater than ever."
At the full council meeting on May 15 in which members voted against considering funding, Councillor Bob Egerton warned that a Cabinet decision to grant funding against the wishes of councillors would be "political suicide".
Cornwall Council granted outline planning permission for the 10,000-capacity stadium on a site at Langarth, next to Truro's park and ride car park, and also for a separate but parallel application, also from Inox, for 1,500 homes, a hotel, a care home, a school and retail space.
The agenda for the meeting on June 20 has not yet been set but this would be the earliest opportunity for the Cabinet to discuss the matter.
See the full statements from the college and campaign group and letter from Mr Dyer on this page and Letters on page 44.
Comments
What pressure? I thought the public was quite clear.
By stevepz at 01:56 on 27/05/12
ReportWhile currently minimum funds going into necessary services such as social care, with the health services in Cornwall under pressure, cutting back on hundreds of professional staff, many in the population with uncertain employment prospects, not to mention the heightened cost of living etc, etc. These things are hidden, but believe me they are happening. For Cornwall Council to agree to spend money on a stadium at this time would be irresponsible.
The feel-good factor from seeing a stadium rise above Truro would be short lived. It would be more of a reminder of those large high grand palaces that despots have built over the ages to promote their own importance, not that of the people around them.
A substantial number of us want to see Cornwall with more powers to control its own affairs and if that's going to happen Cornish politicians and members of the public that wish the same have got to start thinking responsibly i.e. with head as well as heart. I agree with the need to promote the Cornish identity, but that's got to be balanced with a focus on other important issues such as delivery of public services including dealing with deep rooted inequalities within Cornwall.
Relatively better off people being able to move here freely and live in spacious low density housing while many of the Cornish population struggle to find a place to live or are forced to live crammed into small high density developments (this is not to be seen as being against in-migrants but pointing out sometimes unrecognised consequences for the local population) and a stadium is not a solution to that.
Let's get the economy moving with some public spending, but let's be selective about it and consider the long term and seriously take into account the negative consequences of every big iconic project as well as the potentially positive benefits which may be ephemeral anyway. Although some would like us to accept every development is "progress" some are obviously not and we should not feel guilty in saying no, we can't afford that big project at the moment. Anyway there may be alternative less expensive solutions which will give us the same thing.
By williaia2 at 09:08 on 26/05/12
ReportThe Americans have a term for this sort of thing; "corporate welfare" The very people who decry when public funds are used to better the less well off in the community, are the first to applaud the state subsidising a for profit private organisation.
I wouldn't trust the county council to run a spring fair let alone a rugby stadium.
No corporate welfare payments here thanks!
By Big_Ger at 23:19 on 25/05/12
ReportThere can be no doubt that a 'stadium for Cornwall' will pump prime the WHOLE OF CORNWALL. It's one of the few GOOD IDEAS to come out of Cornwall Council over the last three years. I for one am 100% in favour of this proposal and despite Libdem councillors being split on their vote I hope our Libdem MPs can use their influence to bring this great idea to fruition.
By Eddie_PZ at 22:19 on 25/05/12
ReportLies, lies, lies. How can anyone ever believe anything that the council tells us. With the torch fiasco over and done with , the county must be just about skint. But , no they tell us that there is loads of cash to squander on this white elephant that MUST be built at any cost, just so that the leader's CVs will look brilliant when they move to pastures new, leaving behind a bancrupt council with only you and I to make up the deficit. Think about it!
By Terrywright1 at 21:56 on 25/05/12
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