Emergency powers "probably" should not have been used for £300k grant to solicitors: chief exec

The chief executive of Bolton Council has accepted that emergency powers should “probably” not have been used to approve a £300,000 grant to a local law firm, it has been reported.

According to The Bolton News, Margaret Asquith told a corporate and external issues scrutiny meeting this week (11 January) that the powers were used to give confidence to Asons Solicitors, a claimant personal injury firm. The grant, aimed at assisting the law firm with an office move, would have to have met state aid criteria, she added.

Asquith also pointed out that it was not unusual for local authorities to give grants to support businesses. “With a lot of hindsight this probably would have been better if officers had taken this to the next executive member meeting rather than emergency powers,” the chief executive is said to have acknowledged.

In November, Cllr Cliff Morris, Leader of Bolton, ordered an independent audit amid the row over the grant to Asons. Cllr Morris insisted that the investment would be repaid through the business rates payable by Asons.