Councillor Seeks Reassurance Over Scarborough Harbour Repair Funding

North Yorkshire Council has approved £1.84 million for essential repair works to the inner West Pier in Scarborough Harbour but councillors are concerned the harbour account has insufficient funds.

The decision, made by the Executive committee last week, addresses the critical need to strengthen the pier's ageing infrastructure and ensure the continued safe operation of the harbour. However, the financial arrangements for these repairs have raised concerns from local councillors regarding the long-term funding stability of the ring-fenced harbour accounts.

The West Pier, a vital area for fishing vessels in Scarborough, was constructed in the late 1980s using steel sheet piling. Over approximately 40 years, these piles have suffered significant corrosion, including loss of thickness and holes, exacerbated by a phenomenon known as accelerated low water corrosion (ALWC). While not beyond their serviceable life, these defects, if left untreated, would reduce the structure's capacity and jeopardize harbour activities and wider regeneration plans. The proposed repair work involves welding sheet steel plates to the piles, along with a cathodic protection system and protective paint coating, designed to extend the pier's life by 10 years. Neom Engineering Limited has been awarded the second stage construction contract for these works.

Scarborough Councillor Liz Colling has highlighted the financial challenges posed by the £1.8 million repair programme. She noted that since a recent court case concerning Whitby Harbour accounts, Scarborough Harbour accounts are now ring-fenced. Councillor Colling sought reassurances that the works will go ahead given that there is insufficient funding available in those ring fenced accounts.

"The executive approved the sheet metal piling to expand the life of West Pier by 10 years of a cost of 1.8 million.

However, since the court case in Whitby Harbour and the challenge to Scarborough Harbour accounts, those accounts are now ring fenced.

Essentially for Scarborough Harbour, that means there is insufficient money in the balance to fund that 1.8 million pound.

So North York Council has agreed to pay that money on an interest free loan, and the Harbour account will be paying that off over a number of years.

I did ask a question at the exec and I'm afraid I didn't get a straight answer to how many years it would take to pay that back."

Further pressing the financial implications, Councillor Colling sought clarity on two key points. First, she requested an indication of how long officers anticipate it will take for the currently overdrawn harbour account to repay the loan from North Yorkshire Council's reserves. Second, she questioned whether this financial process – where NYC underwrites necessary work when the harbour account has insufficient reserves, with the harbour account then repaying over time – would be the standard approach for future harbour works. Councillor Colling expressed her mindfulness of an upcoming harbour strategy that is expected to identify "further investments required in both Scarborough and Whitby harbours", noting that both accounts are now ring-fenced.

"What concerns me is that later this year, the Harbour Strategy and Investment Plan will be produced, and that will outline some of the investment that's needed in our harbour., The Bull Nose by the Lighthouse and other areas that comes at a price of anywhere between 20 and 30 million pounds.

Guess what? There's no money in the Harbour account to pay for it.

North Yorkshire have given an undertaking that they will fund it. They'll obviously apply for grant funding as well, but they will fund the balance and the Harbour account will be paying that back, over a greater number of years.

Responding to these concerns, Gary Fielding, a council officer, explained the broader financial reality of the ring-fenced harbour accounts. He acknowledged that while the ring-fenced status is a requirement, it "hasn't made a great deal of difference because the investments are so significant that those ring fence reserves are always likely to be in deficit". Mr. Fielding elaborated, stating, "Scarborough is likely to remain in deficit for the foreseeable future," as the revenue income is "not significant enough to erode this". He confirmed that the council will therefore "make good through its other reserves to offset that".

Mr. Fielding reassured Councillor Colling that this approach is indeed how they are "now required to show it" and how they "will do it," consistent with the court ruling. He added that while Whitby Harbour, due to more significant income, might take longer to go into deficit, "even Whitby Harbour is likely to get into deficit" eventually.