PEOPLE living in Ludlow and south Shropshire have been hit by problems with payments according to Liberal Democrats.

The failure of Shropshire Council’s new payments is having a major impact on key council services as well significant elements of the county’s economy, according the opposition party at Shirehall.

These are the key findings of research done by the County’s Liberal Democrats.

“Major council contractors have been feeling the pinch for months,” said Roger Evans, leader of the Liberal Democrat group.

“Buses and taxi companies who supply transport to schools are nearing breaking point with many vowing not to work for the council. It is now apparent that key services like schools are affected with staff being unable to log on to the council system or make payments.”

“Shropshire Council introduced a new computer payment called Business World. It went live in one concentrated changeover with little training.”

A Liberal Democrat councillor in south Shropshire says that some suppliers are on the verge of stopping working for the council.

“I have a school bus company which has not been paid since January and another now thinking it’s not worth doing business with the Council anymore,” added Heather Kidd, who represents Chirbury and Worthen.

“I know of staff that have not been paid and others that have not been given access to claim their expenses.

“On top of that Schools trying to order materials are finding that only the most expensive companies are on the system to order from. That’s simply no good – our underfunded schools have to be able to shop around for the cheapest materials. The system is just not fit for purpose at present and the training was too little too late. Why wasn’t this all piloted and the problems ironed out before it was implemented with a big bang? Truly not good enough.”