Reassurance sought on Shepway Council Investments

1.53.53pm BST (GMT +0100) Thu 9th Oct 2008

Lib Dem Cheriton Councillor Tim Prater has written to Cabinet Finance Chief David Monk and Finance Director Kathryn Beldon at Shepway Council to ask what investments in Iceland, if any, the District Council has. Tim said:

"I sincerely hope that Shepway we will not be hit by losses on investments in Icelandic banks. I've written to Shepway asking for urgent confirmation that we had no investments, and also asking if Shepway Pension funds are secure.

"Many Councils across the Country seem to have investments in jeopardy, including a staggering £50 million at Kent County Council - around £100 for every household in Kent. Unless the Government protects Councils from losses, there is a huge risk this could lead to higher Council Tax bills for already massively stretched Kent taxpayers."

Kent County Council has given an update on the £50m it has deposited in collapsed Icelandic banks. £50m is around 10% of the money Kent County Council has invested on the advice of financial consultants.

Councillor Mike Eddy gave BBC Radio Kent a breakdown of the £50m investment following a meeting with council leader Paul Carter.

He said £16m came from the staff pension fund, £8m was school reserves, £2m was Kent Fire Authority money that the council was administering, and the rest of the cash was council tax and government grants.