City councillors agree to write off more than £400,000 of debt

Norwich City Council has resigned itself to the loss of more than £400,000, after agreeing to write off a series of debts - including one dating back to the 1990s.

At Wednesday's cabinet meeting, members agreed to write off £266,000 in unpaid business rates, as well £147,226 of debt pre-dating 1998.

The business rates debts relate to a company called Project Zeus, which ran the bars Mercy, Flaunt and Rocco's restaurant on Prince of Wales Road, which went into liquidation in December 2016.

Members also agreed to write off around £40,000 owed by Eylex Ltd, a menswear retailer which went into liquidation last summer.

Councillors also agreed to write off more than £147,000 the council claimed to be owed from Norfolk County Council, relating to work it carried out between 1996 and 1998, as part of the highways agency agreement.

In both cases, cabinet members agreed the debts were irrecoverable.