Chatham-Kent Council will continue to receive ‘Use of Consultants’ reports

By Aaron Hall – Daily Post Editor

Chatham-Kent Council turned down a staff recommendation at Monday nights (Dec. 7) meeting to discontinue the annual “Use of Consultants” report.

The report states that the report requires 50 hours of Financial Analyst time to complete and “is not used for decision making purposes.”

“Chatham-Kent requires the utilization of consultants when their expertise is necessary or when there is workload that municipal staff cannot accommodate,” the report states.

It was recommended by staff to discontinue the annual breakdown of the consultant costs, so “finance personnel can focus on other municipal priorities.”

“It is not as easy to get the information as it may appear,” said Stuart Wood, director of financial services/treasurer. “It is a very time consuming process.”

Wood added that with the workload already in place for his department, it could require additional staff to complete the report, or the potential hiring of a consultant as well.

Chatham Counc. Steve Pickard said it is not necessary for Council to have the report.

“Who cares if it’s a consultant… it doesn’t matter who does the work,” Pickard said. “The focus should not be whether it’s a consultant or staff… as long as the work is done.”

Pickard added that the “Use of Consultants” report is simply data, not information.

“You can’t tell anything from these numbers,” he said.

Wallaceburg Counc. Sheldon Parsons disagreed, saying the report is necessary to keep track of what is being spent of outside consultants.

“We need to track it and manage it,” Parsons said. “It is important to know where we stand.”

Chatham Counc. Doug Sulman said the annual report is a very worthwhile function.

“I think we need this,” he said. “I realize it’s (inconvenient) for staff. But staff is not my boss. The public is my boss.”

The recommendation to discontinue the report was defeated by a recorded vote of 10-7.

Councillors Crew, Faas, Fluker, Gilbert, Pickard, Robbins and Weaver voted for the recommendation. Councillors Brown, Clarke, Herman, King, Parsons, Pinnsonneault, Stirling, Sulman, Vercouteren and Mayor Hope were against the recommendation. Counc. McGregor was absent.