The Belfast Lord Mayor’s car for the next four years has been chosen - with a significant drop in its annual costs.
At a recent Belfast City Council committee meeting, elected members were required to choose the Mayor’s new vehicle. Against the recommendations of council officers, and following a Sinn Féin proposal, councillors went with the cheapest option, and chose a KIA EV6 electric estate.
The 2024 car is an automatic electric estate, with an electric maximum range of 443 miles, the second best range out of the seven cars members had to choose from. It will cost £26,844.48 over the four year lease, that is £6,711.12 per year.
READ MORE: Sinn Féin claim "discrimination" over Council funding for West Belfast children’s centre
READ MORE: Calls for rules on short-term holiday lets after Belfast house advertised at £19k for ten weeks
Council officers recommended a different car. The officer report states: “Taking account of the required seating and load space needs, long journey, timely returns and lease/hire cost, it is recommended that the BMW i5 4 door saloon best meets all round operational requirements and overall value for money over a four year contract period. The cost estimate for this preferred option over four years is approximately £44,250.”
Despite the KIA being part of the menu, officials did not believe it met “the operational loading space and resilience requirements” of the Mayor’s office. Officials also recommended a BMW i7 Saloon at £65,028, a Mercedes Benz EQS Saloon at £55,260, and an Audi ETron GT Saloon 4 at £67,180, all over four years. Three other cheaper and smaller models were included in the choice, including the chosen KIA.
The current lease of the Lord Mayor’s official car, an Audi acquired in 2020, is due to end this October. Due to delivery lead times it is anticipated to take a minimum of six months to acquire the new replacement vehicle once ordered.
The council report states: “The current annual lease cost of the Lord Mayor’s official vehicle is £8,439 (from 2020) and a total of £33,756 over the four year contract period. To replace the current vehicle with the same model, the total cost is estimated at £67,180 over four years which would constitute a significant increase compared to the previous procurement exercise.”
At the February meeting of the council’s Strategic Policy and Resources Committee, Sinn Féin Councillor Ciaran Beattie said: “Most members won’t even see the inside of this car. For us we think (the recommendation) is excessive, in terms of what we would be spending.
“The current contract of £33,756 would go up to £67,180 if we kept the same car. The recommendation is for £44,250, which is still an increase of £11,000. For a car rental, we think that is excessive.
“We propose going for a more affordable model, that actually has a longish range, and that is the KIA electric. That would be better value for money.”
The proposal was agreed by the whole chamber, and will go to the full council meeting next month for ratification.
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.
English (United States) ·