Anger over canal restoration spending delays

Work has been ongoing for years to clean up and restore Montgomery Canal near Welshpool

It would be "totally indefensible" if the multimillion pound restoration of a 4.4 mile (7km) section of canal on the Wales-England border is allowed to fall short, a councillor has said.

A total of £13.9m in UK government money was agreed for the £15.4m overhaul on Montgomery Canal in 2021 but all the spending has to be agreed by next March.

A Powys council committee meeting was told a delay in earmarking about £6m in spending was due to a number of issues and officials would seek a nine month extension.

"The reputational damage this would cause if we fail to deliver this project is absolutely enormous and totally indefensible," said Welshpool councillor Graham Breeze.

"What has really concerned me is that the first I heard of a delay and possible loss of the funding is when I read it in the newspapers," the Powys Independents councillor told a meeting of the authority's governance and audit committee.

Council auditors said there was a "medium" risk the project would not be delivered due to spending deadlines.

Their report said any underspend could be clawed back with a new government in Westminster having different spending priorities.

Liberal Democrat councillor David Selby, council cabinet member for economic development and regeneration, explained that July's general election had "caused us great problems".

'A lot going on'

"I'm confident that we know the way out of this and so long as the PAR [project adjustment request] process can speedily be resolved at a government level then we are ready to get on," he said.

"You will know there are contractors on site in Welshpool working on elements of the project now as we speak.

"Nearer Newtown, work is being conducted on the aqueduct.

"It's not like nothing is happening, there's a lot of work going on."

Programme delivery manager Louise Nicholson said before the application for an extension could go to Westminster, it had to be approved by the council's joint Liberal Democrat and Labour cabinet.

And if the extension was agreed, the project could have an extra nine months to spend the available funding.