TNS owner hits out at Shropshire Council over £80,000 grant row
The owner of The New Saints football club owner has questioned whether the whole Shropshire Council cabinet should be held responsible for an £80,000 grant saga.
Mike Harris hit out at the authority over the grant, which was awarded for new seating, saying he was ready for a legal battle over the saga.
It has been alleged just £10,000 had been paid back after The New Saints were awarded the money.
But Mr Harris said that the authority stated the repayments were voluntary, and he has said he is ready for a legal battle and wants an apology from councillors.
The whole affair has "blackened" the name of the JD Welsh Premier League champions, according to Mr Harris, who released a new statement in which he appeared to demand more money from the council as compensation for the harm done to TNS's reputation.
The situation came to light in January, when the authority said it was looking into the £80,000 grant, after claims were made that it had not been paid back.
Ever since then the situation has rumbled on, with Mr Harris last week saying the council had previously said payments back were voluntary.
Leader of the council Peter Nutting spoke out earlier this month after the council admitted it had made errors.
But he insisted that, although some administrative mistakes had been made by the council, it was not at fault. He said the issue was a "cock-up and not a conspiracy".
Shropshire Council has been contacted for comment.
