The Conservative leader of Kent County Council has made a staunch defence of the authority’s burgeoning business activities, describing them as the envy of councils across the south east. Cllr Paul Carter delivered an uncompromising rebuke to critics who have questioned the scale of KCC’s involvement in various commercial ventures, saying it was absolute nonsense for the council to be accused of being unfriendly to business.

His comments were made at KCC’s annual council meeting and come amid continuing concern among some businesses uneasy about the activities of the various trading companies and commercial services. A campaign group "Hands Off Kent Business" has been set up to represent companies who are in competition with KCC.

KCC says the money it makes through commercial activities helps keep council tax bills down. But businesses have complained about a lack of transparency and are concerned they are being undercut unfairly when bidding for contracts.

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Our FoI request refused again

KCC has refused for a second time a request made by the Kent Messenger Group to be told how much it is spending on a business venture offering building and maintenance services, including plumbers and electricians.

KCC rejected our appeal against an earlier refusal of a Freedom of Information request to disclose the information, arguing the public interest in doing so did not outweigh the need to ensure its commercial interests were not compromised.

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Cllr Carter said the county council's commercial activity was the envy of public agencies across the south east. "They are creating enormous job opportunities, not just directly for commercial services but for sub-contractors," he said. "Let’s stop knocking commercial services; let’s celebrate their massive success in the Kent economy, delivering significant profits and keeping the council tax down as low as possible."

Mike Richardson, the managing director of Kings Hill Recruitment and a leading member of the campaign group "Hands Off Kent Business" said: "If Cllr Carter is so confident in his assertions about the value of commercial activities, why can’t KCC be more transparent and accountable and open its books so we can see?"