Swindon Borough Council can go ahead with its plan to put a number of its properties up for sale in a bid to raise much-needed money.

But the ruling Labour cabinet should also think about other options other than just selling the freehold of those assets.

And in future, it should have a clear policy on why, when and how it disposes of income-earning properties.

That’s the unanimous view of the council’s Corporate Overview and Scrutiny committee which grilled council leader Jim Robbins over the cabinet‘s decision to put a number of its assets, which might include farms, office and industrial buildings and shops on the market.

While the number and specifics of those properties, and their indicial asking price, are confidential, it has been publicly disclosed the council hopes to make £21m from the sale,

From this, it will use £11m to pay off short-term debts which exceed the rental income by £300,000, and the remaining £10m left for capital projects.

The meeting went in to a private session to allow councillors to discuss the properties and possible returns

But before that, the Conservative shadow member for finance Councillor Matty Courtliff said: “I have significant concerns. There is no valuation of the properties in the appendices of the reports. I would expect to see those, and I think some assets are significantly undervalued.”

Cllr Robbins said that offering the properties for sale did not mean the council would accept any offer and that it would refuse offers it thought were too low.

Conservative group leader Councillor Gary Sumner said: “The paper lacks sufficient detail to enable the cabinet to make an informed decision.

“The assets we are selling produce a long-term income. They were bought, in some cases, for that specific purpose. That revenue would continue long after the receipt from the sale of the assets is long gone.”

The head of property at the council Rob Richards told the committee that the receipts,  and benefit in paying down the debts would be of financial advantage to the council for about the next 10 years, but that after that the loss of income would be a minus.

Cllr Robbins said that investing in commercial property was always speculative and added: “I’m not convinced that they are all contributing to the council’s mission. And long-term, the revenue is useful, but we are in a very sticky short-term financial situation.”

He said the £10m left over would be used to fund the council’s ‘transformation plan’ so its work could be put on a sustainable long-term footing.