Medway Council's finance chief has accused his own staff of lying over the costs of the hugely controversial Chatham bus station.
Cllr Alan Jarrett (Con) launched a blistering attack on officers involved with council-run Medway Renaissance as it emerged that a further £1.5 million of the already spiralling costs would be needed to cover the project.
He had even considered taking legal action against staff over the shambles.
But the man in charge of the team on the end of the accusation has responded saying Cllr Jarrett was fully aware of progress throughout. And Labour has accused the Tory of passing the buck.
The project has been dogged by delays and financial difficultes even before the latest overspend emerged. The much-vaunted 'dynamic bus facility’ opened with fanfare and criticism in equal measure, in October - six months late and already £2m over its original £5m estimate.
Leaflets bore the slogan “it’s ready, are you?” but bins, toilets and screens did not work, and zebra crossings were hurriedly painted days after it opened.
Medway Renaissance had already been disbanded by this point with the loss of 19 staff. The government-funded body had also been involved with other regeneration projects such as Medway Park (formerly Black Lion) and Gillingham station.
Announcing that the council would have to take out a loan to cover the additional £1.5m bus station costs, Cllr Jarrett, above, said: “I am appalled by this figure. I’m sorry to say that we were consistently lied to by members of the Medway Renaissance staff.
“I can recall at the final meeting we had with Medway Renaissance staff we were told categorically that everything was on time and on budget. The truth was very different.”
Cllr Jarrett used his keynote budget speech, delivered at a full council meeting to claim Medway Renaissance was told of overspends by contractors as early as July 9, 2010, but did not pass that news to the council.
He said he had “looked at the possibility” of taking legal action against individual staff but it had not been feasible. He added: “I could name the officers involved but I won’t.”
He said: “There has to be accountability. The task of overseeing Medway Renaissance fell to RCC [the Regeneration, Community and Culture department]. The buck has to stop somewhere and RCC will have to take the matter forward.
“We still have the final accounts to come and we can’t rule out any further overspends.”
He said “the whole matter is absolutely shameful”, adding: “I am determined that there shall be full transparency.”
A document containing details of the loan, which will cost taxpayers £280,000 a year to pay back, was circulated minutes before the budget meeting.
Officers wrote: “The cost of this borrowing is to be met by an unspecified savings target for RCC. The source of these savings will be worked upon as a priority.”
Yet Labour finance chief Cllr Vince Maple said the blunders, including the £380,000 pay-off to Arriva to leave the Pentagon bus station, were squarely the council’s fault.
He said: “The council failed to deliver on its flagship project, the bus station nobody wanted.”

The Medway Renaissance team was launched in 2004 headed up by Brian Weddell, who earned £118,686 a year controlling projects such as Rochester Riverside, Gillingham station and Medway Park.
Mr Weddell hit out at Cllr Jarrett’s claims, saying: “All parties were fully aware of the position on the the bus station and the overspend was predicted following political actions which changed the design.
“It is wrong to suggest that Medway Renaissance was responsible. Cllr Jarrett was briefed at a weekly meeting.”