Dudley's highways chief claims residents are not getting the truth on potholes

The clashes came during a session of the authority’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee on January 22 when plans for the highways budget were under the spotlight.

Dudley’s Conservative cabinet member for roads, Councillor Damian Corfield, hit back after he came under fire from councillors on road repairs.

Councillor Parmjit Sahota said: “You don’t have to have a PHD in road surfacing to know that the road surfaces in council estates in deprived wards are in poor condition, further reductions will be a double whammy for residents in those areas where they are facing cuts in services.

“Now the areas where they live are going to have less maintenance, my understanding is the busier the road the more investment it gets. There is a two-tier system in road maintenance, we need assurances these areas will not get forgotten.”

Councillor Corfield told the meeting the council had moved away from a reactive service to planned repairs. He added changes to how repairs are carried out would extend the longevity of the surface.

He added: “I wouldn’t totally agree that we have a two-tier approach, we are two years into a five-year programme, we are covering some great areas now but you have got to take into consideration that Dudley borough has over 700 miles of roads.”

Councillor Shaukat Ali, Labour’s finance spokesperson, said: “He paints a picture there is no problem at all but that is not the case.

“While he claims he has revolutionised road surfacing, he might have done that, maybe on the main roads but out in the estates and local areas our roads are blighted with potholes.”

Councillor Corfield responded by pointing out the council had to fill a £42m shortfall in the next financial year and the reasons for that had not been discussed before being told by committee chairperson, Cllr Shaun Keasey, to answer the questions.

Councillor Corfield insisted it seemed a one-sided question and answer session and said he was trying to explain the situation.

He added: “What I will ask is – if a question is asked you give me a fair shot to give that answer because out in the borough our residents are not getting the full picture and the truth.”