From their own figures, Chorley's Labour Council spent £123,494 before VAT on staging their two-day flower show in Astley Park, set against income of £32,896. Income came from ticket sales of £26,7267, £5,000 believed to be from sponsorship, and £1,170 from stand concessions.
Main costs include:-
RHS Chelsea Exhibit "as part of [the] Chorley Flower Show" £40,000
Path around the RHS Chelsea exhibit £3,137
Staging the show £41,569
Rides, Entertainers and Celebraties £18,011
Publicity £10,294
Prizes £6,550
Ticketing £2,305
Miscellaneous other costs £730
Transport £550
Preview night £346
All amounts shown are excluding VAT. All data from Chorley Council monthly Spend over £250 tables from April to November 2015.
Cllr Paul Leadbetter, Leader of the Conservative opposition group commented:
"There is no doubt that Chorley Flower Show was extremely successful and well supported, attracting a reported 10,000 visitors, unfortunately this cost Chorley Council Tax Payers over £9 per visitor.
We fully support events being held within the borough however these need to be self-financing and we will aim to remove any unnecessary financial burden on council tax payers, by challenging Labour spending plans."
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