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WQ.59/2018
WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE
MINISTER FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, TOURISM, SPORT AND CULTURE
BY DEPUTY J.A. MARTIN OF ST. HELIER
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON MONDAY 19th MARCH 2018
Question
In relation to the running of the AquaSplash swimming pool on the Waterfront, will the Minister –
- advise how much has been paid to Serco in operational subsidies in each year since 2001, indicating in which years the agreement with Serco was revised;
- advise whether or not these figures include a £100,000-a-year maintenance grant, or whether such a grant has been paid in addition to the operational subsidy, and whether or not the whole of this maintenance grant has been spent in each of the years listed; and
- indicate what work, if any, he has undertaken to confirm that this is an effective use of public money?
Answer
In relation to the running of the AquaSplash swimming pool on the Waterfront, will the Minister –
- advise how much has been paid to Serco in operational subsidies in each year since 2001, indicating in which years the agreement with Serco was revised;
The Agreement between Serco & WEB was signed in August 2001, however AquaSplash itself did not open until July 2003 with the subsidy payments commencing in 2005.
Details of subsidy payments are included in the Tables below:
Year | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 |
States Subsidy (£) | 0 | 0 | 218,000 | 276,000 | 298,000 | 343,000 | 348,000 | 362,000 |
Developer Subsidy (£) | 0 | 0 | 87,813 | 99,897 | 103,148 | 103,120 | 107,822 | 107,822 |
Year | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
States Subsidy (£) | 369,000 | 376,000 | 383,000 | 391,000 | 291,000 | 291,000 | 291,000 | 291,000 | 291,000 |
Developer Subsidy (£) | 107,822 | 107,822 | 107,822 | 107,822 | 109,137 | 203,661* | 136,332 |
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The main 20 year contract between Serco & WEB allows for renegotiation of Terms on a five yearly basis and this was achieved via revised Heads of Terms with Commencement Dates as follows;
1st January 2010
1st January 2015
- advise whether or not these figures include a £100,000-a-year maintenance grant, or whether such a grant has been paid in addition to the operational subsidy, and whether or not the whole of this maintenance grant has been spent in each of the years listed;
No Maintenance Grant is paid by the States to Serco in respect of Aquasplash
When new HoT were put in place by ESC in 2015, in return for a reduction in the level of subsidy, a Minor Capital budget of up to £100,000 per annum was agreed, intended to fund an annual, mutually agreed programme of maintenance works.
The Programme is agreed by both parties, the schedule of works tendered and contracted, payments being made by Serco then re-charged to the States via the Department
Payments from the Minor Capital Budget since 2015 are indicated below:
Year | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 |
Minor Capital Expenditure (£) | 91,264 | 85,842 | 68,994 |
- indicate what work, if any, he has undertaken to confirm that this is an effective use of public money?
When the current HoT was put in place by ESC in 2010, a significant amount of financial evaluation was undertaken, prior to the current model being developed, exploring the use of public finances.
In terms of going forward, the Department is due to meet with Serco in April for an annual review, at which point discussions will begin regarding a new HoT Agreement to commence in January 2020, until the 2023 lease end-date.
As part of the preparations for these discussions, EDTSC has engaged specialist external input, in order to advise on the current Terms and Conditions, levels of subsidy (compared with similar pools in the UK) and any proposed new T&C's that may come forward.
This preparatory work is already under way