The facts surrounding the purchase of Camberley Shopping Centre are already well established. An all-party group commissioned an independent report from experts that concluded that the price paid was fair, and that the purchase was an investment to secure the social and economic future of the community[1].
Councillor Alan McClafferty became Leader in 2019, and began transforming the Council. Chief Executive Karen Whelan left the Council. Changes were made to decision-making and governance processes. A new Chief Executive was recruited and by 2022 the entire top team at the Council had changed.
The Council’s property assets generate a profit that helps to pay for many non-statutory services, including Camberley Theatre, dog waste bins, grass cutting in parks, charity grants, outdoor gyms, public toilets and community transport.
The claims that the Council is near bankruptcy are false. Surrey Heath Borough Council has the 2nd largest ratio of Reserves to Income in the South East, according to the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) website: cipfa.org/services/financial-resilience-index/resilience-index :
When the 2023-24 budget was signed off in February 2023, the Council’s officers described the Council as being in robust financial health with healthy reserves.
There has been no message from official Council channels that suggests otherwise. On the contrary, the
The Liberal Democrats are using fake news about the Council’s finances to lay the ground to claim they have turned the Council around.
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