A major political row has erupted over County Hall’s troubled relationship with its Highways PFI contractor, Island Roads.
Council leader Phil Jordan has said the authority is once again heading into a legal dispute of ‘a contractual nature’ with Island Roads.
Councillor Ed Blake, leader of the Conservatives on the Isle of Wight, has said in response that Cllr Jordan has led the authority to a ‘sorry position’ in its relations with the service provider.
Cllr Blake has said:
“Legal disputes have lingered while political responsibility for the roads contract has rested solely with him personally and/or his Alliance administration for eight of the last 12 years.
“That ‘constant disagreements’ in the contract exist is a damning reflection on his leadership and his inability to work with others.”
The Alliance administration has been further responsible for a ‘collective failure of the council’ to ‘address road issues that matter to our communities’, the opposition politician claims.
Hitting back at Cllr Blake’s comments, Phil Jordan has accused the representative for Ventnor and St Lawrence of making a ‘politically driven attack that is inappropriate, wrongly informed and without merit’.
Cllr Jordan has said:
“I would start by reminding him (Cllr Blake) that it was the Conservative group under the then leadership of David Pugh, back in 2012/2013, that delivered the now infamous Highways PFI contract.
“Over the past 12 years there have been numerous disputes, ongoing disagreements, and several legal processes concluded either through mediation or commercial agreement.
“We are currently faced with further dispute and legal process over key service delivery contractual issues that the council and the service provider do not agree on.
“Absolutely nothing to do with leadership or policy but very much to do with interpretation and disagreement over what the contract says and for what the council believes it is paying.”
It has emerged that £1.6million awarded to the Isle of Wight Council to fix potholes has been diverted to other highway schemes and improvements.
It’s also said that £2.14million awarded in 2023, for improvements on the A3056, will be used for a number of schemes – with work so far focused on drawing up, designing, costing and planning those works.
Furthermore, it has been confirmed that land ownership issues have led to delays in carrying out improvement works at Vittlefields Cross – a notorious junction on Forest Road. This scheme will be completed ‘shortly’, Cllr Jordan has said.
It is a well known fact that jerk jordan hates Ventnor and it’s residents and businesses. He is also the most useless “leader” that this council has ever had, if he doesn’t get his own way he will shout and scream like a spoilt child. Typical behaviour for a heavy drinker, seen that before. He always will hide behind some sort of legal hogwash rather than sort out the real problems that people are having, “I am alright Jack” attitude and sod the rest of you. Someone needed to call him out at last.
Time for you to step down Phil, you are just too toxic. The IR contract is too important to have personalities in the way. And thanks for taking away my vote today!
Jordan is at best incompetent, and at worst spiteful in his attitude towards Ventnor. Bath Road has been closed under his useless watch for 2 years because a small amount of rubble fell on to it. Something which a man and a wheelbarrow could shift in an afternoon. And no proposals about what to do with the rockfall at the start of Belgrave Road. Time to spend more time with your family Jordan and let someone with a modicum of ability look after our roads.
In this instance, Jordan is absolutely right. I’ve been saying here for years that the contract was a disaster we should not have signed up for (under the Tories) and that the terms and conditions have basically meant the IR can do as little as they like for as much as they like. When Jordan et al questioned the terms and refused to pay the instalments until the contracted work had been finished, they replied by using the add-ons of traffic lights, trees etc to increase their revenue! And STILL the contracted work hasn’t finished; they’re now just putting a dust coat on some of the roads which will be gone in 6 months.
There are two companies…IR Services Ltd, which takes the cash and is responsible for the work , and IR Investments Ltd, a ‘non-trading’ company which banks that cash and is responsible for nothing.
When a dispute from the council arises the two companies play football with us and mire us in legalese whilst still collecting the revenue.
Those who signed us up to this years ago knew we’d be a cash cow…and don’t care because they had/have skin in the game.
Poor Cllr Jordan always gets the blame
Cllr Jordan is right about this.
Island Roads have been a disaster since they
took responsibility of the Islands roads.
Mountjoy were the better option pre PFI
Jordan must go for the well being of the Isle of Wight he is incompetent at everything he has done on the council. Chain Ferry is a good example.