Surrey Lib Dems call out Tory waste and incompetence on new IT system

At this week’s full council meeting the Leader of Surrey Lib Dems spoke up on behalf of those county council employees who had contacted him about payroll errors and delays, and in doing so  he questioned the competence of the Tory administration with regard to the implementation of a new IT system for services such as payroll, procurement and HR. 

In spite of the protestations from the Leader of the Council at that meeting, evidence provided at the Resources and Performance Select Committee on 18 October revealed the extent of the failures. 

The new system was originally due to go live in December 2021, but this date was pushed back on two occasions, and it was finally operational in June this year. In addition to the delays it was  confirmed there had been overspend of around £10m, taking the final bill up to a staggering £27m. 

Members of all parties questioned county council officers on the details of how the project had gone so badly off track and what was being done to assist those employees, including those working in Surrey’s schools, who had been affected by errors and delays. 

After the select committee meeting Will Forster, Leader of Surrey Lib Dems said: “The delays and overspend are staggering and bad enough but what is worse is how it has impacted on ordinary council employees who were either not paid on time or not paid correctly. This is wholly unacceptable, especially at a time when we know so many are struggling to make ends meet.”