Final approval for plan to scrap new sports centre

A decision to scrap plans for a new £32.9m sports and leisure centre in Bradford has been "rubber stamped" after being reviewed by a cross-party scrutiny panel.

Bradford Council's Reform UK executive voted last month to discontinue the proposed Squire Lane leisure facility in Girlington, which would have included a public swimming pool.

According to the Green Party, which opposed the cancellation, "not one Conservative or Reform councillor asked a single question" during the review meeting.

Responding, Conservative councillor Debbie Davies described the criticism as "disingenuous to say the least" and said it was "better that the grant is returned than good money be thrown after bad".

"We are confident that the decision taken was the right one," she added.

The facility, first approved in 2019, was expected to serve more than 87,000 people living within 1.5 miles (2.4km) of the site.

It had already been awarded £20m in government funding, which would have to be returned if it did not go ahead.

However, council leaders decided to cancel the project after costs increased and members were asked to approve up to £5m in additional borrowing.

Ahead of the review, the council said the project no longer represented good value for money given its financial position.

The Greens said the call-in process had given councillors an opportunity to reconsider the decision before it was allowed to stand.

In a statement following the review, the party said Conservative and Reform UK councillors voted to allow the cancellation to proceed without questioning executive members at the meeting.

Green councillor Anna Watson said members had "nodded through" a decision that would see £20m of government funding returned and £5.4m already spent written off.

She said the area "badly needs this facility".

Watson added: "Scrutiny is supposed to mean asking hard questions on behalf of residents. Conservative and Reform councillors did not even try."

Davies said her group had raised concerns about the scheme for some time and argued it should have been reconsidered after health partners withdrew from the project in 2022 and 2023.

She said the Conservatives believed costs had continued to escalate while the proposed facility had become significantly smaller than originally planned.

Davies added that commitments had been secured to explore alternative swimming provision and transport to other pools for affected children.

The BBC has approached Reform for comment.

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