Councils missing out on £16bn in interest savings by refinancing LOBO loans via Government
Posted inCitizen Debt Audit

Councils missing out on £16bn in interest savings by refinancing LOBO loans via Government

Earlier this month, Kent County Council and bankrupt Northamptonshire County Council announced they were refinancing LOBO loans taken out from state-owned RBS. Kent County Council refinanced LOBO loans worth £60m at around 4.2% interest, mostly with a loan from the government’s Public Works Loan Board (PWLB) at 2.21% interest. Northamptonshire County Council did the same for a £20 million LOBO loan. LOBOs are expensive long-term loans we consider illegitimate for reasons outlined in chapter 5 in our recent report on the citizen debt audit in the London borough of Newham. Following the announcement of loan refinancing savings, we conducted an... [continues]
10 Reasons Newham Council is the UK’s ‘Debt Capital’
Posted inCitizen Debt Audit

10 Reasons Newham Council is the UK’s ‘Debt Capital’

On Tuesday 07 November, Newham Mayor Sir Robin Wales was questioned by BBC London about the Borough’s ranking as a household debt hotspot - labelled the “UK's debt capital.” Sir Robin Wales attempted to explain away Newham’s shocking debt position as a natural consequence of the decline of the Newham Docklands, which hit working class communities in London’s East End particularly hard from the 1960s. But are there other causes that link back to Newham Council's economic, social and welfare priorities - such as chronic under-investment in social housing, low wages and a history of support for gambling - causing... [continues]