Stroud MP David Drew has called on Parliament to hold an urgent debate on incineration contracts, after documents have finally revealed that the Javelin Park incinerator will cost £100 million more than planned.

Speaking in the House of Commons on Thursday, David said that 'council tax-payers money is being burned'.

Mr Drew raised the issue in Parliament after Gloucestershire County Council finally revealed that the contract with Urbaser Balfour Beatty to build the £500 million incinerator at Javelin Park will cost £100 million more than planned.

 

GCC revealed the figures following a long running battle by campaigners for the project costs to be made public.

Speaking in Westminster on Thursday, David asked the Leader of the House, Andrea Leadsom MP, to schedule an urgent debate about incinerators.

He said: “Gloucestershire County Council has spent an extra £100 million on its half a billion pound contract to build Javelin Park project.

“It cannot be the only local authority that is watching council taxpayers’ money just being burned on projects which are bad value for money. Will the Leader of the House order an urgent inquiry and a debate on the issue?"

Andrea Leadsom replied that Mr Drew had raised an important point and urged him to raise again at the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs questions on Thursday.

Mr Drew is also supporting calls for a for an independent inquiry into the incinerator.

He added: “The incinerator is catastrophic project, locking us in to a system over the next 25 years which does not encourage waste reduction and recycling. I will continue to call for a full parliamentary debate on this.”

Mr Drew is a long-standing campaigner against Javelin Park on environmental and economic grounds.

In 2018 Mr Drew led an investigation jointly with UKWIN, (UK Without Incineration Network) which showed that particulate pollution emitted by incinerators is not monitored properly and he continues to call for tighter regulation.