HERE'S ONE DEAL THAT DID GET DONE - COUNCIL AND ENGIE AGREE TO EXTEND PARTNERSHIP

Engie's Nicola Lovett - solid and successful relationship

A FURTHER extension to their 10-year old partnership has been agreed by North East Lincolnshire Council and French-owned private contractor Engie.

The service delivery contract has been in place since July 2010. 

It was initially extended to 2022 but a further three years have been added to the deal, taking it to 2025.

Engie are responsible for delivering the regeneration and infrastructure services for NELC and have  similar contracts with other local authorities.

Following a review, various changes were made to the local agreement both to strengthen governance and to improve performance.

Says NELC leader Cllr Philip Jackson: "Since the review,  a robust improvement plan has been successfully implemented.

"We have reshaped the relationship to make sure  the council’s strategies and plans for growth are understood and followed.

“The partnership has worked particularly well in this last year as we responded jointly to the Covid-19 pandemic.

"We have further aspirations for strong growth across the borough. 

"Being supported to achieve our aims and targets is a very important aspect of that."

Equally enthusiastic is Engie's chief executive for UK & Ireland, Nicola Lovett, who comments: "Over the last ten years, we have built a solid and successful relationship with North East Lincolnshire Council, and we are pleased to be offered an opportunity to build on this. 

"The regular reviews we undertake with the council have offered a strong platform to tailor our services over the years and ensure we adapt accordingly to all social, economic and environmental issues." 

The Grimsby News says: On balance, this news is to be welcomed. Private enterprise is invariably slicker in getting things done than local government where projects frequently become mired in bureaucracy. On the downside, some of Engie's money-making wheezes are to be discouraged - at least unless they have been discussed in a forum open to the public and the press. For instance, its insetive scheme to encourage  funerals  for snakes, tarantulas, stick insects and other pets to be held at Grimsby Crematorium is in the worst possible taste. In the pipeline is another particularly sneaky project which involves charging residents an annual fee to park outside their homes across a wide area of Cleethorpes. Also highly  regrettable  is its continuing stranglehold on the planning system which allows its own officers - not those of NELC - to determine almost every application. This is a shocking breach of ethical protocols and should be discontinued forthwith.