THURROCK Council is poised to cash in on its assets and cut debt by selling 14 shopping parades.

At a meeting of the authority's cabinet on Wednesday, 17 September, members are expected to put 'for sale' signs on shops it owns across the borough, potentially raising millions of pounds to cut it £1 billion plus debt mountain.

If proposals in a report are approved 200 year leases would be sold for the ground floor shopping units while the council would retain freehold ownership of the buildings and council flats that are above the shops.

The sale would not affect current leases shop owners have, they will pass to the new owner and remain in place with the same conditions for the duration of the lease.

Defoe Parade, Chadwell St Mary.

Details of the shopping parades can be found via this link. They are The properties are on Broxburn Parade, Calcutta Road, Canterbury Parade, Commonwealth House, Daiglen Drive, Defoe Parade, Derry Avenue, Derwent Parade, Gardner Avenue, Garrison Parade, Garron Lane, Jesmond Road, Riverview, and Romford Road.

Flats will continue to be owned by the council and tenants will not be affected by the sale in any way.

Cllr Valerie Morris-Cook, Cabinet Member for Finances and Resources, said: "These parades have been on the list for disposal for some time, and they are an attractive proposition as there is only a 4% vacancy rate of the retail units.

"If approved it will allow Thurrock Council to release these assets and bring in money to reduce the council's debt, without any negative impact on shop owners.

"Existing shop tenants will be able to take part in the bidding process, either individually or jointly, if they want to look into the possibility of buying the lease.

Broxburn Parade, South Ockendon.

"Alternatively, the leases may be purchased by established commercial investors, in which case shop tenants will continue under their existing leases on the same terms and conditions.

"The tenants living in the flats will have nothing to worry about at all, their flats will still be owned by the council and nothing will change for them."

The council is not disclosing the value of the revenue it receives from current rental agreements, nor what it expects to make when the properties go to auction.

Over the past three years the council has sold off a significant number of property assets it owns, chipping away at its £1 billion debt, largely run up by failed investments investments in solar farms and other flawed business deals.

Servicing interest rates on the cash it has borrowed is costing tens of millions of pounds annually and the authority and the government installed commissioners who effectively run the council have been damned by critics by 'selling off the family silver'.