Newcastle City Council exposed offering rent free building to North East Assembly

£250,000 rent lost on city building
Jan 11 2007
By Peter Young, The Evening Chronicle

Critics are calling for an investigation after Newcastle Council allowed prestige city centre offices to be occupied rent-free for 20 years.
It's now been revealed that the potential cost in lost rent to city taxpayers is between £230,000 and £250,000 and there's a call for the independent public spending watchdog, the District Auditor, to investigate.
The row involves a decision by Newcastle City Council to allow the unelected North East Assembly and the Association of North East Councils to occupy offices at the historic Guildhall, a Grade I listed building on the Quayside, rent-free for around six years.
More