The council’s Service Manager Energy, Mareike Schmidt who oversaw the Warm-Up Bristol BANKRUPTCY FIASCO, which left residents with half-finished building works on their homes last year, is apparently the South West’s Sustainable Energy Champion of the Year.

However that’s not stopped her finding entirely new ways to SCREW UP. A recent finance report to Cabinet explains:

“There is anticipated to be a shortfall in rechargeable income from the Housing Revenue Account and Trading for Schools in the Energy (utility) Purchase budget. This is due to the Energy price reduction in recent years being captured as a corporate saving without any corresponding reduction in income target for the energy service.”

In other words, another of Mareike’s department’s jobs is to buy gas, electricity, oil, and bio fuels for the council and other public sector bodies including schools in bulk and sell it on to them at a CHEAPER RATE.

Alas, when the price of energy DROPPED last year, eager pup Mareike was quick off the mark to record the savings and show her bosses how ‘efficient’ (and indispensable) she was. But, alas, she forgot to record that cheaper energy would also mean less income for her department as they would have to drop their prices.

The result? An inaccurate set of accounts presented to councillors for the 2016 -17 budget. That’s got to be worth another award surely?