Blackpool News

3rd June 2010

By James Graham – Business Correspondent

A £39m deal to take Blackpool Tower, the Winter Gardens and the Golden Mile into public ownership will not be affected by Government spending cuts according to the town’s council.

The local authority said the deal had been completed and refurbishment work is now being carried out. A new operator, Merlin Entertainments, will take over the day-to-day management in November.

There has been some speculation that the new Government’s eagerness to slash budgets could derail the scheme which has been funded by a collection of public bodies.

The European Regional Development Fund committed £14m, the Northwest Regional Development Agency put in £7.9m, Blackpool Council committed £10m and the Homes and Communities Agency paid £7m. As well as buying the attractions, the funding will also be used for a £10m programme of repairs for the Tower.

Following the Chancellor George Osborne’s decision to announce cuts worth £6.2bn some reports have suggested an £8m grant for the refurbishment of the tower was being withdrawn.

A spokesman for the council said he was not aware of such a decision and the Homes and Communities Agency – part of the Department for Communities and Local Government, which is facing a 7.5% budget cut – said its contribution of £7m was already committed.

“The funding has already gone to Blackpool from the last financial year’s budget”, he said. But the Northwest Development Agency could not clarify the position with its £7.9m contribution. All the UK’s RDAs are expected to share cuts of £270m.

The decision to buy the assets from Trevor Hemmings has been made with the belief that heavy investment in the landmark buildings will secure the long-term future of the area by rejuvenating tourism.