The councillor now in charge of finances at Nottingham City Council was a director of two companies that owed around £165,000 after going bust last year. Following Labour's success at the local elections in Nottingham on May 4, the party chose to elect David Mellen as their leader again for the next four years.
Audra Wynter replaced Adele Williams as the council's deputy leader and was also chosen to be the portfolio holder for finance. Announcing its top leadership team earlier this month, Nottingham Labour said: "With a background in finance work, Councillor Wynter will ensure the council remains on track in delivering a balanced budget."
But questions have now been raised by opposition councillors about Companies House records showing the financial situation of two companies that Councillor Wynter was involved in. The companies, named Wyncare and Wynspire, both operated in the care sector and Councillor Wynter was a director of both of them.
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Companies House records show that both of these companies entered into a voluntary liquidation process last August. This means that a firm was appointed to work through the assets of these companies and make distributions to those who had lent them money.
The documents show that taken together, Wyncare and Wynspire owed creditors and shareholders £165,168.47 as of last August. For Wyncare, the total figure stands at £103,264.77, with around £25,000 of this being owed to the preferential creditors who are first in line when payments are distributed.
The total amount owed by Wynspire was £61,903.70, with around £2,500 of this being for preferential creditors. Explaining why these two companies ended up in this situation, Councillor Wynter said: "Like so many local companies, the covid pandemic fundamentally affected our business and undermined what was a previously successful care business, delivering best in class care to local people."
But opposition councillors have raised questions about Councillor Wynter's position in light of the Companies House information. They have also pointed to Councillor Wynter's previous role as one of the directors of Robin Hood Energy.
Councillor Wynter was appointed to Robin Hood Energy in February 2020, before stepping down in the September of that year, with the company eventually going bust. A report later accused Nottingham City Council of "institutional blindness" for continuing to prop up the company, which it invested £43 million in.
But in regards to concerns about her portfolio holder position, Councillor Wynter pointed to the other companies she has run during her career. Companies House shows Councillor Wynter has been involved with 33 companies, ranging from entertainment firms such as 'Loony Toad Quack' and 'Shatners Bassoon' to property development businesses.
Three other previous directors of Robin Hood Energy - Steve Battlemuch, Cheryl Barnard and Pavlos Kotsonis - also serve as portfolio holders in the Labour executive running Nottingham City Council. But in regards to Councillor Wynter's position, the opposition group at the council said: "It's difficult to see how the portfolio holder's first hand experience of the insolvency process across Robin Hood Energy and now two separate, taxpayer supported companies doesn't undermine their qualification for the role of portfolio holder for finance."
The group said this was especially the case given "the well documented ongoing financial pressures the council has been exposed to following the demise of Labour's Robin Hood Energy project." A Government board appointed in the wake of issues such as Robin Hood Energy continues to monitor improvements at Nottingham City Council, with its latest report criticising a "lack of urgency" at the authority.
The council's opposition group, which consists of three Nottingham Independent councillors and independent councillor Andrew Rule, added: "We would also be keen to know whether these latest insolvencies were disclosed to the Labour group when the portfolio holder stood for election to the position they now hold." The taxpayer funded nature of the companies noted by the opposition group relates to the 'bounce back loans' which Companies House records show were given to Wyncare and Wynspire, worth around £40,000 in both cases.
Councillor Wynter, who has served as the councillor for Bestwood since 2019 and was portfolio holder for highways, transport and parks before the election, added: "I have run successful companies providing employment to 118 people and supporting more than 500 local businesses. I will bring this rigour, experience and learning to my work as Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Finance, putting the residents of Bestwood and Nottingham first, as I always have done."
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