Taipei's plan for eight luxury sunshades in the Xinyi district has slipped from this summer to next January, an embarrassment for Mayor Chiang Wan-an and a gift to his critics.

• Each shade costs NT$7.44 million, and the city promised they would be up by summer.
• Construction only started July 20 with a 180-day schedule, pushing completion to mid-January — after the election.
• City councilor Chien Shu-pei says the delay breaks a written promise in Chiang's own policy report, blaming the mess on former deputy mayor Li Si-chuan.
• New Taipei and Kaohsiung have rolled out their own shade projects faster and cheaper.
• Critics suspect the slip is meant to push the controversy past election day.

Outlook: Expect the shades to stay a campaign talking point, with pressure on the city to explain the cost and the timing.