A ROW has broken out over the award of a £145,236 grant by the leader of Camarthenshire Council to a council employee who wants to convert a former bank into office space.

New Labour group leader, councillor Rob James, said he was concerned about the size of the grant and the decision-making process relating to its award by councillor Emlyn Dole.

Cllr James has asked the Wales Audit Office and Public Services Ombudsman for Wales to investigate.

Plaid council leader Emlyn Dole said the claims made by his rival were “totally outrageous”, and accused him of “blatant political mischief”.

In his letter to auditors and the ombudsman, Cllr James said the former Lloyds Bank on 1 Quay Street, Ammanford, was sold for £120,000 three years ago.

He said: “The Ammanford Regeneration Fund has a fixed budget of £300,000 and it is intended to provide prospects of immediate job creation.

“We are concerned that almost half of the total budget of this regeneration fund has been granted to a private landlord, with little evidence that it meets the programme’s criteria of creating jobs in the Amman Valley.”

The decision to award the grant was taken by Cllr Dole in private at an executive board decision meeting for the leader on April 11.

The information relating to the grant application was deemed to be exempt under the Local Government Act, but the meeting agenda named the applicant and said he was a council employee.

Cllr James said he felt there was a lack of accountability about the decision to award the grant, and claimed that some residential space would be created as part of the bank revamp.

In response, Cllr Dole said he had no idea who the applicant was and therefore did not need to declare any interest in the matter at the April 11 meeting.

“There was no problem with the application, or the applicant,” he said. “I didn’t know him, and due process was followed.”

Cllr Dole said council employees were, like any member of the public, entitled to apply for regeneration funding for projects.

He added that the employee had gone through a two-stage application process, that his application was recommended for approval, and that the office space created would deliver 12 new jobs from new tenant firms.

Cllr Dole said the £145,236 grant would be paid in stages, and that he understood the employee would also be investing his own money in the project.

He described the location of the former bank as “the Oxford Circus” of Ammanford.

Referring to the claims set out by Cllr James, he said: “They are totally outrageous.”

He added: “There is a by-election in Ammanford (on May 17) — it’s just blatant political mischief.”

Cllr James said the by-election was for the town council.

“This is a county council matter,” he said. “I think it’s important that questions are asked.”