Norfolk council rules out smelly £7m compost plant probe

Norse Group, set up and owned by Norfolk County Council, built the plant, off Buxton Road in Marsham, in 2010.

But within three years, it had to stop dealing with food waste because of complaints about the smell.

The compost plant at Marsham (Image: Denise Bradley)

By 2021, it had stopped processing green waste, even though Norse's lease of the land runs until 2035.

The saga prompted questions about the level of scrutiny Norfolk County Council has over Norse.

At a meeting of the council's Conservative-controlled cabinet on Monday, retired solicitor John Martin, from Holt, asked why the authority had not carried out an investigation into the £7m spend.

Mr Martin said, when the development was agreed, the council's then chief executive and a cabinet member, were on the Norse board, as directors.

Andrew Jamieson, Norfolk County Council cabinet member for finance (Image: Norfolk County Council)

But Andrew Jamieson, cabinet member for finance, said Norse was a "separate corporate entity from the council".

He said: "Waste disposal is an area in which Norse was already involved, and therefore a decision by Norse to pursue an investment of this type was a matter for it as a corporate entity.

"Similarly, the losses from that venture have then also been a matter for Norse to deal with as any other commercial entity would have to.

"We do have to acknowledge that some commercial investments do not succeed, and this was unfortunately the case in this instance.

"To my knowledge, none of the current Norse Board were board members at the time this investment decision was originally taken, prior to 2010.

"I am therefore afraid I fail to see what benefit there is to be gained from incurring further time and expense on an investigation, when the facts of the matter are already well known and widely publicised."

The composting plant cost £7m (Image: Denise Bradley)

Norse confirmed last December, that it had been spending £125,000 a year in rent and other outgoings, but that a sub-lease agreement had been signed for another tenant to move in.

But it recently emerged a formal sub-lease had yet to be signed. Norse said it could not name the tenant or state how much had been paid since last December, for "commercial reasons".