The Mayor of London has spent at least £86,000 of taxpayers’ money on benches imported from Spain for his pedestrianised Oxford Street, the Telegraph has revealed. Cllr Elliot Keck, Westminster City Council’s Deputy Cabinet Member for Value for Money and Finance, said: “Buying high-end benches from Barcelona won’t magic Oxford Street into La Rambla, all it will do is waste yet more taxpayer cash on a vanity project already going horribly wrong.”
Six of the benches have been installed so far between Orchard Street and Great Portland Street, with more than 50 still to come. Each costs around £1,540 before the cost of shipping them from Spain and installing them. Shoppers and tourists who spoke to the Telegraph called them “cold” and “plain”.
At a meeting of the Oxford Street Development Corporation in September, Council Leader Cllr Paul Swaddle expressed disappointment that the benches had not been sourced from a UK company. Eight of the corporation’s 12 board members were chosen by the Mayor.
Deputy Leader Cllr Tim Barnes said: “One of the things that I like about the area is, yes, it needed an investment, but it still felt distinctly British. It was a bit different.
“There seems to be a belief we can turn Oxford Street into La Rambla by aping their style. That is misguided. It is British and we enjoy Spanish weather for about six weeks if you are lucky.”
The Mayor banned buses, taxis and cyclists from Oxford Street on 26 October, bypassing Westminster City Council and the London Assembly. The scheme is costing around £144 million. Sir James Cleverly, a prospective Conservative candidate for Mayor of London, told the Telegraph the benches were “loud, pointless and expensive”, and that “with no commercial funding in sight, taxpayers will be left to pick up the bill”.
