August 16, 2007 Thursday
Coventry Evening Telegraph
Councils' taxi bills are pounds 15,000 a day;
Council chiefs are looking again at using cabs for transporting at risk children and adults
COUNCIL tax payers in Coventry and Warwickshire are forking out a staggering pounds 5.5million a year in taxi fares.
That's an incredible pounds 15,000 a day.
The Telegraph can reveal that Coventry City Council spent more than pounds 1.5million on taxis in the past year and Warwickshire County Council paid out almost pounds 4million.
In Coventry, in the last financial year the council spent pounds 1,435,000 on taxis transporting children. Of that, pounds 770,000 went on getting children with special needs to and from school.
A further pounds 665,000 was spent transporting other children who are classed as at risk of being taken into care because of a breakdown in their families.
Last year, the council also spent pounds 92,000 on taxis for adults and older people receiving social care.
And there was also a case of a taxi being used to transport an asylum seeker, although the circumstances of that journey have not been revealed.
Staff also claimed a total of pounds 26,000 in expenses for taxis between 2006 and 2007.
Warwickshire County Council spent a total of pounds 3,948,762 on taxi journeys between 2006 and 2007.
Some pounds 3.4million was spent on children with special needs and a total of pounds 542,707 was spent taking children who live in the more remote and rural parts of the county, to either school or to the nearest bus stop.
The total bill is expected to rise to more than pounds 4.2million this year.
COVENTRY CITY COUNCIL
Expenditure on taxis in the last financial year
Total amount spent: pounds 1,555,000
Amount spent on transporting children with special needs: pounds 770,000
Amount spent on transporting all other children: pounds 665,000
Amount spent by Community Services: pounds 95,000
Amount spent by Finance and ICT: pounds 2,000
Amount spent by City Services: pounds 2,000
All other departments: pounds 2,000
WARWICKSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL
Expenditure on taxis in the last financial year
Total amount spent: more than pounds 3.9m
Amount spent on transporting children with special needs: pounds 3,363,995
Amount spent on transporting all other children: pounds 597,947
Total amount spent by staff in all other departments: pounds 4,820
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