REDDITCH'S struggling town centre shops have missed out on more than £100,000 of vital emergency funding, it can be revealed.

A £435 million business rates relief package was announced in 2017 by Chancellor Philip Hammond - supposed to help businesses struggling to pay their business rates.

However, millions of pounds of that failed to reach the businesses it was intended to help, and was instead returned to Treasury coffers.

Redditch Council was given £124,000 but handed out just £15,800 to ailing local firms.

It has given back a whopping £108,200.

Communities secretary at the time, Bromsgrove’s MP, Sajid Javid, promised “absolutely no delay” in allocating and using the money.

Cllr Matt Dormer, leader of Redditch Borough Council, said: “If Government would like to help us to maximise the relief that can be awarded then they should consider removing the condition that relief is only awarded to ratepayers who have an increase in their bills.

"They should also consider allowing authorities to retain unspent funds from 2017/18 in order to review their schemes and to determine whether adjustments should now be made to help ratepayers in downwards phasing who are paying a transitional premium."

He added: “Whilst we are aware that some individuals consider that this funding is “free money” it should be noted that any funding provided to local authorities is drawn from general taxation and we have duty to spend this in an appropriate manner, and not to simply seek to spend as much of the funding as possible, just because it’s there.

"The scheme used in Redditch targeted relief to those taxpayers facing the largest increase in their demands, and ensured that relief was not given to large national businesses and to Government bodies.”