A REPORT in The Basingstoke Extra about the possibility of covering the town's bus station with a £1million canopy was accurate despite the scorn of prominent Labour members of the borough council, a meeting heard.

The story was discussed at the latest full borough council meeting where Cllr Andy McCormick said he had been surprised to read that the borough transport panel was going to receive a report on the subject - since he was the panel's chairman.

"There's no money in the budget," he said.

Cllr George Hood, chairman of the environmental overview committee, accused The Basingstoke Extra of having let its standards of accuracy drop since the time of the late Arthur Attwood - Cllr McCormick's grandfather and a former Gazette Newspapers journalist.

Council leader Rob Donnelly joked that the plan was "a kite being flown" by Cllr Ron Hussey, the Liberal Democrat Cabinet member for environmental sustainability. He said: "Excuse me if I duck. I did not quite see it coming."

He added the Cabinet had turned down a £50,000 feasibility study into a canopy - as reported by The Basingstoke Extra - but would not be asking officers to investigate anything else. He said: "Our current position is that it is not our responsibility."

However, Cllr Hussey stood up to say The Basingstoke Extra's report, in which he was heavily quoted, was accurate. He said: "The £50,000 was turned down and what was agreed was that officers would look at the issues involved and report back."

He said that, in his discussions with county council representatives, a canopy was seen as just one potential solution to the "inadequate" shelter at the bus station, but there had been no further commitment.

Conservative councillor Harry Robinson asked if Cllr Donnelly was "happy" with this contradictory state of affairs inside the Cabinet. Cllr Donnelly replied: "Yes, we have no plans to proceed."