Lib Dems urge Council to 'buy local' after steel sculpture embarrassments

12.01.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 1st Feb 2006

Sheffield's Liberal Democrat group are proposing that the Labour run Council adopt a 'buy local' policy at the meeting of Full Council this week. The move comes just weeks after the authority came under fire from local business after it emerged two prominent steel public art works will not be made within the City famous for steel.

In a move that transcends party politics, the Liberal Democrats are supported the call of local Labour MP Clive Betts for an investigation into why a Sheffield firm could not be found to manufacture the iconic projects. The investigation will be asked to look into why the offer of a local businessman, to provide funding to ensure the sculptures were made in Sheffield, was refused.

Sheffield's local business community were overlooked when contracts for the two pieces of public art were awarded to firms outside the City. The 'Cutting Edge' steel sculpture, to be installed outside the new rail station, was awarded to a firm in Bristol. The steel spheres, to be placed in the new Millennium Square, will be made by a firm in the North East.

The Labour Council have defended their decision. However the Liberal Democrats area asking why the Council did not make moves to promote Sheffield businesses when the high profile art was commissioned.

As part of the Lib Dems proposals they have directed that the Council adopt a 'buy local' policy. This would mean that the local authority undertakes work to ensure that local businesses feel the full benefit of Council spending. The measure is employed by other Councils and Lib Dems believe the policy would help to restore confidence in the local business community after the disappointment of losing out.

Cllr Paul Scriven, Leader of the Liberal Democrat group, said: -

"We must do all we can to support existing local business within Sheffield and this Council should take a leading role. A 'buy local' policy would ensure that, wherever possible, the Council would use local business. After the disappointment brought about by the loss of these contracts the policy would go some way to regaining the confidence of local business"

"I also agree with Clive Betts MP that there should be an investigation into how local business lost out on being involved in these projects. We need to find out why the work was not commissioned with Sheffield business in mind, and why the generous offer of private finance to ensure we had the 'made in Sheffield' brand on these public art works was turned down"

"The Labour group who run the Council have many questions to answer, an investigation should provide us with the answers and ensure that we can do things differently in the future. The Council should promote the 'made in Sheffield' brand and support local business so that we can boost the local economy and provide more and better jobs for the people of Sheffield. At the moment this just isn't happening and opportunities are being missed that would help our local business community"

Copy of the motion to be moved at the Feb 1st meeting of Sheffield Council

NoM moved by Cllr Paul Scriven seconded by Cllr Simon Clement-Jones

That this Council: -

(a) believes it is important for this Council to actively support and promote local businesses in order to help boost the local economy, support local jobs and promote the 'made in Sheffield' brand, and therefore believes that it is vital that local businesses are involved in high profile projects within Sheffield in order to showcase the vast amount of talent and ability businesses in Sheffield possess;

(b) is therefore outraged that the present administration have overlooked Sheffield business community and awarded the contracts for two major pieces of steel street art, the 'Cutting Edge' at the station and the spheres at the new Millennium Square, to firms in Bristol and the North East;

(c) is astonished that the Council have turned down the offer of a prominent local businessman to provide funding to ensure that 'the Cutting Edge' is made by a firm in Sheffield;

(d) condemns the present administration for continually damaging our local business community and believes this is just another example of how the present administrations 'anti-business' attitude is to the detriment of the people of Sheffield and this Councils social justice agenda;

(e) agrees with the MP for Sheffield Attercliffe Clive Betts when he said on the 30th December 2005, in the local media "There should be an investigation into why a Sheffield firm could not have been found to do a project of this kind. Perhaps the city of steel should be making sure the steel it displays actually comes from Sheffield", and therefore directs that the Chief Executive carry out an investigation, to be considered at the next meeting of Council, which outlines the reasons why the Council did not seek to commission street art which Sheffield businesses could have created, why the offer to provide funding so that 'the Cutting Edge' could be made by a Sheffield business was turned down the Council, and to evaluate the decision making process in both of the above instances;

(f) instructs that this Council adopt a 'buy local' policy, as promoted by the major opposition group and used by other Councils in the UK, as it will ensure the Council actively supports local business in terms of actual work and confidence within our business community.