Super Council Could Have £1 Billion Super Debt.

According to Kent Bloggers, the Shepwayvox Team and former Green Party Thanet  Councillor turned blogger Ian Driver, plans to create an East Kent super council, consisting of Canterbury, Dover, Shepway & Thanet councils will create an organisation with astronomic debts of up to £1 billion pounds.

A Freedom of Information request submitted by the public face of Shepway Vox Team to the Public Works Loan Board (PWLB), a government organisation which lends money to local councils at a cheaper rate than banks or other lenders, shows that, including the interest payments, the four super council partners as of the 31st Dec 2016, held debts totalling a massive £553.33 million.

Authority	Total PWLB Debt (millions)	Total Interest (£millions)	Total Debt + Interest
Canterbury City Council	£203.83	77.43	£281.26
Dover City Council	£94.48	47.39	£141.87
Shepway District Council	£58.95	34.36	£93.31
Thanet District Council	£22.17	14.72	£36.89
Totals	£379.43	173.9	£553.33

Canterbury has by far the largest PWLB debt owing £281.26 million including interest payments, followed by  Dover £141.87 including interest, then Shepway with £93 million and Thanet with £36 million.

The interest to be repaid equates to 45.83% of the original loans.

But according to former Green Party Thanet Councillor, turned blogger Ian Driver and the Shepwayvox Team, “the actual debt the four councils hold, when combined, will be much greater as each of the four councils are certain to have taken out loans with banks and other financial institutions over and above their PWLB borrowing. Each of the four councils also have to service a pension deficit shortfall as well. We will be submitting freedom of information requests to the four councils and it wouldn’t surprise us, if the total debt owed by Canterbury, Dover, Shepway & Thanet turns out to be in excess of a £1 billion”

Financial Woes & Rancour

The debt which is owned by the super council is said to be the reason why Ashford Borough Council (ABC) pulled out of the negotiations with Canterbury, Dover, Shepway & Thanet, with its leader Cllr  Gerry Clarkson CBE (pictured) suggesting his council did not share the same financial woes on the scale as the other four, and was a major reason behind the decision for ABC, to drop out. Perhaps the financial woes are why the Leader of Kent County Council Cllr Paul Carter CBE has attacked the planned merger, or is it because he might lose a bit of influence and power? Anyway there is rancour amongst the Kent Tories.

Referendum

The Shepway Vox team and former Green Party Thanet Councillor Ian Driver have said, “If it goes ahead, the establishment of the proposed council will be the biggest political change in East Kent since the local government re-organisation in the 1970s. The super council will be the largest district council in the UK, serving a population of over 600,000 people, this is twice the size of the average London council. Because of the scale and importance of the change the partner councils should be as transparent as possible about their respective financial positions and this should include the publication in full of all their debts. Shepwayvox & Ian Driver also believe that the Super Council is of such importance for the people of East Kent that there must be a referendum on whether or not, the planned merger goes ahead.”

Shepwayvox