Birmingham city council could sell some of its £5bn of property assets to settle legal claims topping more than £1bn over equal pay at Europe’s largest local authority.
According to the BBC, the council has agreed settlements with thousands of women who were paid less than men for the same jobs.
As the majority owner of NEC Group, which is estimated to be worth £250m-£300m, the council is already mulling a sale of the National Exhibition Centre and its sister arenas – the LG Arena, the National Indoor Arena and the International Convention Centre – through a sale or flotation.
The group comprises four main venues, a ticketing operation, a catering business and a casino that is under construction. Other assets are now being considered for sale.
Speaking at Estates Gazette’s Question Time event in Birmingham last November, council leader Sir Albert Bore said: “I can tell you one thing: I am not going to trigger a fire sale. But we will be disposing of assets because Birmingham will face a bill over the next two to three years of around £1bn. I have got a good half of that covered off, but to meet the other £500m will mean asset sales. However, we will do that in a planned way so that we can maximise the values of what we dispose of.”
The council has already paid out almost £500m after borrowing money, but the Department for Communities and Local Government will not lend any more. There is now a shortfall of circa £550m.
lisa.pilkington@estatesgazette.com
