• About
    • Ethics policy
    • Privacy Policy
    • Ownership, funding and corrections
    • Complaints procedure
    • Terms & Conditions
  • Contact
  • Support
  • Newsletter
Brighton and Hove News
21 May, 2025
  • News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Opinion
    • Community
  • Arts and Culture
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Food and Drink
  • Sport
    • Brighton and Hove Albion
    • Cricket
  • Newsletter
  • Public notices
  • Advertise
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Opinion
    • Community
  • Arts and Culture
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Food and Drink
  • Sport
    • Brighton and Hove Albion
    • Cricket
  • Newsletter
  • Public notices
  • Advertise
No Result
View All Result
Brighton and Hove News
No Result
View All Result
Home Brighton

Missed loan payment spurs council to review Brighton i360 debt

by Sarah Booker-Lewis - local democracy reporter
Thursday 26 Jan, 2023 at 12:10AM
A A
12
Brighton i360 loan payment deferred as debt rises to £45 million

i360 – Picture by Glen Bowman licensed by Creative Commons from Flickr

An urgent review of the i360’s debt is under way after the tourist attraction failed to make its recent loan repayment.

Brighton and Hove City Council’s external auditor Grant Thornton supported the urgent review in a report to the council’s Audit and Standards Committee yesterday (Tuesday 24 January).

In the annual external auditor’s report, Grant Thornton said that, despite restructuring the loan last year, the i360 could not make its £900,000 December payment.

This suggested that the loan cost was a more significant risk and could affect the council’s finances over the medium to long term.

Grant Thornton said: “Until the council has fully reviewed options open to it, the likely financial impact over the medium to long term view remains unclear.

“We emphasise the importance for the council’s urgent review of options, and review of the current structure of the loan, to come to a realistic view of what repayment the council is likely to recoup on its investment and, therefore, to be able to include some accurate forecast of the impact of this on the council’s financial sustainability.”

The auditor said that the current arrangements to monitor the business were “sufficient”. These included a cross-party “member working group” which includes councillors, officials, the Brighton i360 and council-appointed business advisers. Council finance officials also attended i360 finance meetings.

Independent councillor Peter Atkinson said that he was concerned about the potential “realistic view” of repayments.

Council finance chief Nigel Manvell said that the i360 would feature in papers prepared for the next Policy and Resources Committee meeting and the annual budget meeting of the full council next month.

He said: “It will need to recognise the situation with the i360 and make some judgment about what the future financial position of the i360 will be.”

Green councillor Siriol Hugh-Jones said that the i360 board also met yesterday (Tuesday) – and a cross-party working group was due to meet on Monday 6 February to discuss the effect of the i360 finances on the council’s budget.

In 2014, the council agreed to borrow £36.2 million from the Public Works Loan Board to lend to i360 Ltd. Interest has pushed the figure to £43 million.

Councillor Peter Atkinson

The loan proposal was supported by the former Green council leader Jason Kitcat and the former Conservative opposition leader Geoffrey Theobald.

At the time, the Labour minority leader Warren Morgan said that his group was “not prepared” to support the loan.

From 2019 to 2021, £6 million in repayments were deferred because of the coronavirus pandemic restrictions. A payment that was due in 2019 was deferred because of “bad weather”.

Proposals to restructure the loan were under way in 2018 because visitor numbers fell short of forecasts.

Last year the council agreed to restructure the loan, with plans to undertake “cash sweeps” twice a year, leaving the business with a working balance. The i360 did not sign the deal.

The restructure assumed higher visitors from 2026 onwards, with the council then receiving £1 million every six months.

However, the only payment received last year was £700,000 in June.

ShareTweetShareSendSendShare

Comments 12

  1. Oblong Wong says:
    2 years ago

    Told you so. #sendkitcatthebill

    Reply
    • ChrisC says:
      2 years ago

      And Theobald too.

      The Tories voted for this loan as well.

      #DontLetTheToriesOffTneHook

      Reply
  2. Bradly says:
    2 years ago

    Mothball it as a statue to
    municipal vaingloria and bankruptcy

    Reply
  3. Hendrik says:
    2 years ago

    Maybe word has got around that it is a pathetic, expensive experience.

    Reply
  4. Rob Heale says:
    2 years ago

    Scandalous that “Green” Councillors put £40.2 Million into this LOSS MAKING scheme. The Council are now owed more than £11 Million as a result of this and that debt is rising all the time. The decisions about funding the i360 were made at secret meetings, some heritage was destroyed and the structure is NOT environmentally friendly. What a waste!

    Reply
    • ChrisC says:
      2 years ago

      The Tories are just as complicit.

      They voted for this loan as well.

      Reply
  5. Silas says:
    2 years ago

    Another Green Win!

    Reply
  6. Nathan Adler says:
    2 years ago

    What a surprise that the independent Councilor Peter Atkinson is one of the few talking sense. The Greens want to bury this until after May and Labour seem reluctant to call them out.

    Reply
    • Valerie says:
      2 years ago

      Labour agreed the first £14 million if the final loan !

      Reply
      • ChrisC says:
        2 years ago

        But they voted against the £36m whilst the Tories voted for it,

        The £36m loan replaced the £14m proposal.

        Reply
  7. Arnold Stains says:
    2 years ago

    Lol Green Council…

    Reply
  8. Peter says:
    2 years ago

    So many of us could see this was obvious. The greedy money makers need to be held to account. They and the gullible idiots that fell for the PR spin are responsible.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Most read

Mayor due to bow out this week

Council leader blasts ‘gangsters’ at bin depot

Fire alarm protest investigated by police

Three girls held after stabbing as police also seek male suspect

Proposed sell-off of millions of pounds of council properties and assets prompts questions

Missed loan payment spurs council to review Brighton i360 debt

Opposition councillors surprised to learn that Cityclean was renamed last month

Dog could be destroyed after attacking passer-by

Deaf TikTok star ‘had no translator for care check-up’ three days before death

Detectives hunt suspected sex attacker

Newsletter

Arts and Culture

  • All
  • Music
  • Theatre
  • Food and Drink
Stranded

Stranded

21 May 2025
Alphabet Rainbow: a Fistful of Queer Plays

Alphabet Rainbow: a Fistful of Queer Plays

21 May 2025
Top 5 music performances during this year’s official and unofficial ‘Escapes’

Top 5 music performances during this year’s official and unofficial ‘Escapes’

18 May 2025
The Trumpeter

The Trumpeter – Rotunda Theatre

18 May 2025
Load More

Sport

  • All
  • Brighton and Hove Albion
  • Cricket
Manager of Brighton and Hove Albion’s women team dismissed after allegations

Brighton and Hove Albion battle back from behind to beat Liverpool

by Frank le Duc
19 May 2025
0

Brighton and Hove Albion 3 Liverpool 2 Liverpool went in front twice but Brighton battled back, equalising twice, before Jack...

Match Day 37 – Brighton and Hove Albion v Liverpool

Match Day 37 – Brighton and Hove Albion v Liverpool

by Frank le Duc
19 May 2025
0

Brighton and Hove Albion host the Premier League champions Liverpool at the Amex this evening (Monday 19 May), with kick-off...

Hürzeler says Brighton and Hove Albion may need to ‘win ugly’

Hürzeler praises Brighton and Hove Albion’s talented youngsters

by PA sport staff
18 May 2025
0

Brighton and Hove Albion boss Fabian Hürzeler said that the club’s young talent will be all the stronger for having...

Sussex struggle to make it to day three against Nottinghamshire

Simpson unable to save Sussex from defeat by Somerset in three days at Taunton

by Richard Latham - ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay
18 May 2025
0

Sussex 152 (46.2 overs) and 335 (97.2 overs) Somerset 338 (105.1 overs) and 150-5 (39.2 overs) Somerset beat Sussex by...

Load More
January 2023
M T W T F S S
 1
2345678
9101112131415
16171819202122
23242526272829
3031  
« Dec   Feb »

RSS From Sussex News

  • Detectives hunt suspected sex attacker 21 May 2025
  • Police investigate woman for false rape claim 20 May 2025
  • Man remains in hospital with head injuries as mystery surrounds their cause 17 May 2025
  • Police seize stolen caravans and horsebox worth £300k 17 May 2025
  • Teenager critically injured in machete attack last night 17 May 2025
ADVERTISEMENT
  • About
  • Contact
  • Support
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy
  • Complaints
  • Ownership, funding and corrections
  • Ethics
  • T&C

© 2023 Brighton and Hove News

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Opinion
  • Arts and Culture
    • Music
    • Theatre
  • Sport
    • Cricket
  • Newsletter
  • Public notices
  • Advertise
  • About
  • Contact

© 2023 Brighton and Hove News