Well I suspect, (but I don't know) that the redecorating is £16k but that the renovation is £40k - subtle difference I suppose.
To be honest, I'm getting stuck in the middle here, wish I hadn't bothered
So this is as much as I know. I saw the piece in the telegraph and it said £40k, so I posted that I thought that sounded a lot for a room that's hardly used. I then bumped into someone in the know, they said that the room is in use and that £16k is closer to the cost, the rest being on renovation.
I was quite happy to put the record straight about the room being used more than I thought. Apparently it's used for full council meetings.
As for the money - I don't really understand the subtlety of decoration/renovation - but my source said £16k so no idea why reports say £40k (or alternatively no idea why he said £16k if indeed it's going to cost £40k) - so in other words absolutely no idea what the difference is being spent on.
No doubt my 'source' will put me straight again!