Taxpayers will be stuck with millions of pounds of costs with a council deal to buy the Medway Tunnel. Jonathan Shaw MP (Lab) and local Labour campaigners have attacked the deal by the Rochester Bridge Trust (RBT) to transfer its ownership of the tunnel to Medway Council.

If the transfer is approved by council chiefs in May, then the council will take full liability of the tunnel. The conflict of interest is that the same council chiefs also sit on a number of boards of the RBT itself would see the costs of upkeep for the tunnel shift entirely to the council. This could be as much as 2 million pounds a year.

Since 1998 Medway Council has had a responsibility to maintain the tunnel, but the RBT has made contributions to the upkeep. These contributions would cease after the deal. Mr Shaw, who is also the minister for the South East, said: "This bad deal will burden Medway residents with a 2 million pound bill every year.

"This bad deal could lead to a cut in services or higher council tax bills."

Leading tories hands are dirty

Labour Candidate for Rochester & Strood, Teresa Murray is supporting Jonathan Shaw MP and working with Labour Councillors to stop this poor deal. The Tories are landing Medway residents with a cash devouring Black Hole potentially leading to higher council tax bills or cuts to services or both. Residents have also criticised the accountability of the deal because council leader Rodney Chambers was the senior warden of the RBT, and has had to be excluded from council discussions about the purchase. Residents are calling not only for the cost of the tunnel to be transferred to Medway Council, but the full assets of the RBT as well.

Elected tories run Medway Council and it is therefore extremely questionable that they can act in the interests of both forums. Medway Council agreed it would buy the tunnel in May. The offer was the subject of detailed negotiations with the RBT, which was refusing to pay the full cost of maintenance.

       

Make your voice hard

Jonathan Shaw MP and Cllr Teresa Murray are urging local residets to halt the sale of the Medway Tunnel for 1 Pound.

Rochester Bridge Trust (RBT) with assets of GBP 70m is on the brink of agreeing a deal to sell off Medway Tunnel for 1 Pound to the Council.

Jonathan Shaw MP and Teresa Murray in a joint statement said

"We have said that this is a bad deal and should not go ahead because it will leave the Council Tax Payers short changed by more then GBP 2m"

JONATHAN SHAW MP - "Medway Tunnel - Is it a liability on Medway taxpayers"

KENT TODAY - "Medway Tunnel would leave Medway with 2 million pounds bill"