The council desires to change from blue after campaigners identified that is the color of the town’s greatest soccer rivals.
Labour-led Southampton Metropolis Council has been criticised for ‘wasteful’ spending (Picture: Getty)
A Labour-run council has been criticised after it earmarked £250,000 to alter lights on a bridge in order that they glow in several colors apart from blue. Southampton Metropolis Council has been accused of “wasteful” spending over its plan for the Itchen Bridge to be illuminated in several colors.
The construction is presently lit with blue lights, however campaigners demanded change as a result of it’s the color of Southampton FC‘s arch rivals, Portsmouth. Now, 1 / 4 of 1,000,000 kilos has been allotted by the council to alter the lights.
Councillors need the colors of the bridge’s lights to alter for various occasions throughout the town, not simply Delight.
The council’s finance chief, Cllr Simon Letts, mentioned the lights might be set purple, inexperienced and white for Worldwide Ladies’s Day; white and blue for nationwide celebration days across the Royal Household and even rainbow-coloured for Delight.
Mr Letts mentioned: “The bridge goes to undergo its fiftieth anniversary subsequent 12 months.
“The rationale we introduced it ahead is as a result of it’s an iconic construction in our metropolis and we don’t have fun it sufficient.
“I’m actually happy with the Itchen Bridge. I feel it’s a logo of our metropolis and I feel we have to have fun it extra.”
1 / 4 of 1,000,000 kilos has been allotted by the council to alter the lights (Picture: Getty)
He mentioned the plan wasn’t simply to have the color of Portsmouth and the Conservatives, however to offer an choice to mild the bridge in a wide range of colors to have fun totally different occasions.
Conservative councillor, Rob Harwood, mentioned the spending was ‘wasteful’.
The day’s greatest headlines in UK and World information and extra Subscribe Invalid e-mail
We use your sign-up to supply content material in methods you’ve got consented to and to enhance our understanding of you. This may occasionally embody adverts from us and third events primarily based on our understanding. You’ll be able to unsubscribe at any time. Learn our Privateness Coverage
He mentioned: “Provided that these lights are in good working order now and we’ve obtained one other 9 years of the PFI (Non-public Finance Initiative) the place they must be maintained by the PFI contractor at no further value to us, why are we losing that cash now?
“It’s popping out of the roads price range I assume, so why aren’t we placing it into the roads once we don’t actually to spend it [on lights]. It looks like wasteful spend.”
Leave a Reply