Lib Dem Council ignores appeal for Ideal

Diana Johnson MP today wrote for a second time to Hull City Council about their treatment of Hull companies Ideal Boilers and Ideal Standard.

It recently emerged that within the past two years Ideal Boilers were removed from Hull City Council's preferred supplier list for central heating renewals under the Decent Homes programme. Instead this work on Hull's 28,000 council homes was given to a rival company based in Warwick.

Subsequent bids by Ideal Boilers to be reinstated as a supplier to Hull City Council have been rejected. Meanwhile, Hull bathroom company Ideal Standard has been forced to share its role as a supplier to Hull City Council with a Stoke company.

The Hull North MP wrote to the Lib Dem Leader of Hull City Council on 5 December 2008 about the issue, demanding that more be done to support these key Hull employers as they face the challenges of the global economic downturn (see news statement and original letter at http://www.labouronline.org/wibs/165543/?PageId=ddcde996-4edd-2a64-6d27-133ab922d93a).

Over five weeks later, no reply has been received from Hull City Council.

Diana Johnson MP said: "In these tough times, people in Hull have a right to expect their local authority to take every action within their power to help save local skilled private sector jobs.

"Although losing the work from Hull City Council has not been the only problem that Ideal Boilers has faced in the current global downturn, it would be a great boost to get this work back for Ideal and its local suppliers.

"I wrote last year to the Lib Dem Leader of Hull City Council asking him to review his administration's decision two years ago to export work away from Hull to Warwick. More than five weeks later, it is disappointing not to have received a reply - and to have to chase the issue up again."

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