Development quango sent staff to pottery classes

Former staff of a development quango were sent for patchwork, pottery and jewellery-making lessons at taxpayers’ expense, an investigation has found.

Staff at the now-defunct Thurrock Thames Gateway Development Corporation in Essex, set up to drive through housing and infrastructure projects, were also given unnecessary payments, according to inquiry by the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Brandon Lewis, the communities minister, said there were “irregular payments” in lieu of notice. The Government is backing a legal action against two former executives for recovery of £117,073.