Cognus: how can anyone think the problems are over?

What don't Sutton Lib Dems want you to hear about the problems at troubled education spin-out, Cognus? Here's my speech you weren't allowed to hear from this week's Full Council meeting.

We as the Opposition forced a debate about Cognus at this week's full Council. It was a chance for the whole Council to look at a problem so far mainly contained to meetings of the People Committee and the small Shareholdings Board.

But having run the clock down, the Lib Dems turned the debate about Cognus into a farce. They opened the debate with Lib Dem Cllr Marian James speaking for 5 minutes on why Cognus are really brilliant and any problems are behind them. And then the Mayor closed the debate because we'd run out of time!

We protested and were eventually allowed just one person to speak in reply, so Conservative Cllr Jane Pascoe explained how Cognus have let chidlren and families in Sutton down.

My unheard speech would have highlighted:
- unexplained payment of £300k,
- missing invoices,
- auditors not signing off accounts,
- bosses not turning up to scrutiny meetings
- an impossible business plan
- the MD's sudden unexplained departure

Lib Dems claim all these problems are behind us, but they've been happening since the start, and some have only emerged in the last few weeks. At every stage they've said "This is it, it's all behind us now!"

So far, that's been wrong every time. What are the chances it's true this time?