A museum restoration budget has soared and the opposition leader believes Waverley residents deserve better.

The budget for the restoration of Farnham Museum has risen by 43 per cent according to Waverley Borough Council’s (WBC) Conservative opposition leader.

At a meeting on September 16, WBC was asked to increase the budget for the project from £1,029,145 to £1,471,713.

Jane Austin, WBC’s Conservative opposition leader, said: “When this came to the council last July, the estimated total cost for the project was given as £1,029,145. That has now risen to £1,471,713. While some outside funding has been secured, Waverley is now committed to contribute £485,000 towards the project.

”Council papers highlighted that the original budget brought to Council had accidentally omitted £140,000 of window repairs. The project is now set to take 70 weeks, rather than 52 weeks reported last summer.

“Underestimating the total cost of the work by a cool 43 per cent is yet another manifestation of the spendthrift attitude the council has to taxpayers’ money. It is also further evidence of the failure of the Lib-Dem-led administration who have been in power now for over five years.

“We’d all be better off if they paid a bit more attention to the issues like the museum — which genuinely matters to residents and stopped wasting so much of our money on vanity projects like buying 69 High St in Godalming or the merger with Guildford.”

Carol Cockburn, WBC’s Conservative deputy leader, commented: “While the Conservative opposition is supportive of Farnham’s heritage and the work on this museum. How the Lib Dem administration could forget the windows need replacing is beyond me! The problem is they aren’t looking after the pounds let alone the pennies.”