TAXPAYERS face being burdened with a £73,000 bill for the external audit of Keighley Town Council’s accounts.
The figure was quoted by Councillor Samuel Fletcher, who represents Bracken Bank and Ingrow ward.
An exact figure for the cost has yet to be confirmed by the town council, but it could rise further if police deem there are grounds for a potential criminal investigation into the issue.
Keighley MP Kris Hopkins, responding to the figure quoted by Coun Fletcher, said: “It’s now three weeks since the auditors’ public interest report was made public, and since then all we’ve had is a series of self-indulgent, self-serving rants from individual councillors.
“The town council has responsibility for several hundred thousand pounds of local taxpayers’ money, and we need a detailed response on what it intends to do to address the catastrophic failures identified in the report.” “Local residents are quite rightly demanding answers.”
Mr Hopkins has called for a police investigation, and West Yorkshire Police has confirmed it is looking into whether criminal offences have been committed.
The auditors’ findings identified a number of failings and weaknesses within the town council’s governance, many of which relate to how councillors made decisions on handling public money.
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