WHILST it is good that the Asons grant has been repaid in full this should not in any way detract from the 'mismanagement' of the entire matter from the outset. Cllr Cliff Morris and Chief Executive Margaret Asquith still claim that appropriate due diligence was undertaken prior to the decision to make the grant but how could that be when one of the Asons directors, Kamran Akram, was able to pay back the £300,000 in full on Tuesday afternoon from his personal funds?

Surely part of the due diligence should have focussed on why the owners of Asons needed to request a grant in the first place and that surely should have included an investigation into the personal means of the directors themselves?

This was obviously overlooked or totally ignored as one of the owners has been able to pay back £300,000 from his personal cash at the drop of a hat!

READ MORE: Bolton Council's £300,000 grant to Asons Solicitors is paid back in full

This unequivocally proves that Asons never needed a grant at all and that Cllr Morris's judgement is, at best, flawed beyond belief.

Tony Hutchinson

Smithills