£42million pound office refurb
It came as a bit of a surprise to many people in Wales to hear about the proposed refurb of the old Welsh Office in Cathays Park. It’s an old building, a bit like some old Lufftwaffe buildings of yesteryear, quaint, functional but definitely not modern.
But it’s probably “OK” as an office block. It certainly would be OK for many a business, and indeed could make a good site for multiple businesses now.
However, despite a plan to distribute the Civil Service throughout Wales, a proposal is growing to undertake a refurb of these offices that will cost £42 million – that’s a cost of £14,000 a head.
When I recently equipped an office that really needed updating, the planning figure was £450 per head. So why on earth does the public sector need nearly 30 times that amount as a multiple?
Surely the answer is easy to see: it’s public sector waste. No clear control, no prioritisation and no understanding of the true challenges faced by businesses.
The WAG would do well to put the brakes on this idea as soon as possible. Wales may need to spend its way out of recession, but spending like this is waste of an almost criminal nature.