LABOUR and Green county councillors have joined forces again today to combat the 'disastrous mismanagement' of the Javelin Park incinerator.

Gloucestershire County Council's Labour leader Cllr Lesley Williams (Stonehouse) proposed the debate, which can stretch for two hours in today’s meeting, and requests that construction is brought to a halt.

Cllr Williams raised the debate due to the contract between Urbaser Balfour Beatty and GCC being referred to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) for an investigation.

In Lesley’s statement she wrote: “This council notes that the disastrous UBB incinerator project has been plagued by mismanagement from the start of the process.

“The council notes that the contract held between UBB and the Council has been referred to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

“In light of this, the council asks that the administration halt all work on the incinerator site until the CMA has returned a judgement.

“This council should commit to an immediate independent review of the incinerator contract, specifically examining the way in which the administration has conducted itself throughout the process.

“This council also requests that a cross-party working group with involvement of the six district councils to review the management of waste throughout Gloucestershire.”

Her motion is seconded by Green Cllr Rachel Smith (Minchinhampton), who continues the work of her party and predecessor Sarah Lunnon, who had made combatting the incinerator one of her central campaigns.

Cllr Smith also intends to raise a question asking for the immediate release of the full figures from the 2015 documents, and any subsequent contract amendments.

“Every day that construction continues increases the amount of local tax-payers money being poured into an unsustainable white elephant project,” she said.

“These new documents show that the cabinet continue to refuse to come clean about the true costs of this project - and to show their working for their ever more outrageous claims about its value for money.

“For as long as there is a complaint for the Competition and Markets Authority to review, the prudent thing to do is halt work on construction: and open an independent review to make sure lessons are learnt from the closed and secretive process that has led us to this point.”

A concerted number of challengers from environment campaigners and council’s have fought the plant’s construction every step of the way since the £500 million contract was agreed in 2013.

They strongly oppose the scale, cost and environmental effect of the incinerator, which will be built off Bath Road in Haresfield, close to junction 12 of the M5 motorway.

Deputy leader of GCC Cllr Ray Theodoulou, said: “This is a stunt – which Labour know will fail. With construction underway for months, halting work would cause massive costs.

"This project was initiated after a transparent public procurement process, which looked neutrally at every technology proposed, and has been repeatedly democratically agreed by the council.

"It is a good deal for residents - the incinerator will save taxpayers over £100m over its life, whilst protecting our environment by cutting CO2 emissions and ending our reliance on landfill."

The Labour and Green party proposal was debated in today’s full county council meeting at Shire Hall.

The motion was defeated by 31 votes to 22.