June Slater, a well-known local activist, shared her concerns on Twitter about Thurrock Council’s spending. It is claimed that the council used a massive £650 million of taxpayers’ money to invest in a private wind farm owned by a wealthy person who recently bought a private jet.
According to report: A Conservative council has faced severe financial troubles because it invested over £500 million in a solar farm tycoon named Liam Kavanagh. He used the public’s money to buy expensive items like a yacht and a private jet.
Thurrock Council in Essex borrowed £655 million of public money to invest in Kavanagh’s solar farm business. However, leaked documents show that Kavanagh misused the funds for his lavish lifestyle. His lawyers claim that all the payments were approved by his company’s finance team and auditor.
Thurrock Council hoped that investing in 53 solar farms would bring in millions of pounds in extra income. They issued investments through bonds and were supposed to receive interest payments worth millions. But, after Kavanagh closed his companies, the interest payments stopped, and the value of the solar farms turned out to be lower than expected. This left the council with a £200 million deficit.
Investigations found that the value of Rockfire’s farms was artificially inflated to attract more investment. This misleading information could potentially be fraudulent. Kavanagh insisted on providing inflated power prices to valuers to justify the investments.
Leaked documents revealed that Kavanagh spent the council’s money on his luxurious lifestyle, including a private jet, a Bugatti Chiron car, a yacht, and an expensive diamond-encrusted watch. He admitted planning to use the council’s investment for his personal gain.
Thurrock Council is not the only one facing financial troubles due to risky investments. Other councils like Croydon, Slough, and Woking have also lost public funds on such investments.
The Audit Commission, which previously prevented councils from taking excessive risks, was abolished in 2015. Since then, councils gained more freedom to raise funds and invest, leading to some councils facing financial turmoil.
A report by Essex County Council criticized Thurrock for its risky investments and lack of proper checks. The council’s former chief financial officer, Sean Clark, also invested in other companies that went bankrupt.
Recently, Thurrock Council’s new leader apologized for past failures and promised to recover the financial situation to protect residents. The council was granted permission to increase council tax by 10 percent after declaring bankruptcy, causing outrage among residents.
June Slater’s tweet gained a lot of attention, and people on social media are upset about how their tax money was used. They feel the council should prioritize important things like community needs and essential services instead of funding a private business venture:
