Shropshire Council asked to look into £80,000 TNS grant
Shropshire Council has been asked to look further into information surrounding an £80,000 grant given to a professional football club, after claims were made it had not been paid back.
In 2012, The New Saints, based in Oswestry, was handed a grant of £80,000 to construct new seating at their Park Hall ground to meet Uefa regulations to compete in European competitions.
The grant came from Shropshire Council, and an agreement was put in place to pay back £16,000 a year over a five-year period, to a third party; Oswestry Town Council.
However, it has been claimed by private investigator Paul Wiseman that, following a freedom of information request, questions are still to be answered about paying the money back.
At an Oswestry Town Council meeting on Monday, councillors agreed to ask Shropshire Council for more information and to explain the details surrounding the grant.
Chief operating officer at the football club, Ian Williams, insisted the Welsh Premier League champions have abided by the rules.
He said: "The New Saints Football Club Limited were awarded a grant of £80,000 from the Market Town Revitalisation Programme (MTRP) in May 2012 towards the costs of installing a stand to seat an additional 500 spectators at Park Hall Stadium and we confirm that the club has fully met all of the grant outputs and deliverables outlined in the Grant Funding Agreement."
Shropshire Council have also insisted the grant was given in May 2012, with an agreement to pay back £16,000 per annum of grants over a five year to the Oswestry Joint Economic Board.
A spokesman for the council said: "This grant was to help fund a new stand to increase the stadium's capacity for international competition and to create new jobs at The Venue.
"The grant agreement stated that the project will deliver grants of £16,000 per annum over a period of five years for purposes to be agreed by the Oswestry Joint Economic Board.
"The Board agreed to award £10,000 to fund a Start Up Britain project which was delivered in the town.
"The New Saints FC Limited paid £10,000 to cover the costs of this project. No further projects have been approved by the Oswestry Joint Economic Board.”
The issue was raised by private investigator Paul Wiseman at a town council meeting on Monday, after he had been asked to investigate by private clients.
He said the grant was in the form of a 'legacy grant', and there are questions left to be answered.
He said: "The private clients wanted this to be put in the public domain."
