We decided to make the incentive figures available to the public

I AM writing to respond to the June 8 article in your letters page regarding incentives to entice tenants into The Crescent.

When I became Leader of Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council this information was not available in public documents, but discussed in private session of the council due to commercial sensitivity.

I believe that people should know the up-front cost to taxpayers of securing tenants for the council owned part of The Crescent, and that is why these details for the cinema block, which is the part owned by HBBC, were recently included in public reports. The figures, rightly in my view, do not show details of specific incentives for each unit, to maintain the com- mercial confidentiality of each of its tenants regarding the arrangements entered into.

The Masterplan Reserve of just over £1.6 million that council has provided, is to more than cover for the cost of these incentives, currently budgeted to be £1.2 million.

As reported to council members in January 2016, and subsequent budget papers in February 2016, it is anticipated that there will be some money left in the reserve for other uses.

The incentive costs will be more than recouped from the rentals received over the lease term for each tenant, but it will be several years before the full cost of the incentives is recovered.

Like J Newman, I would prefer council to spend its money in other ways, but having built The Crescent it is right that we secure the best long term tenants, and incentives are needed to do that.

The previous Lib Dem administration should have been more open about the costs of establishing its flagship project, both borrowing costs and incentives. They should have told people, before the project started, that council would need to spend tax-payers money in this way.

I can’t take responsibility for the lack of information in the past, but as I have done in this case, I will make sure with any future projects that tax-payers are better informed. Cllr Mike Hall Council leader