THE council’s level of borrowing is expected to rise by more than £100m across the next three years.

Borrowing will stand at £185m at the end of the 2014/15 financial year but this is set to rise to £290m by April 2018.

A further £20m will be borrowed in the next year but in the two years after that an extra £110m will be needed – although some of this will be offset by money coming into council coffers.

Council Leader David Renard (Con, Haydon Wick) said: “The projections are down to the fact that over a number of years we have made capital investment commitments but the funding is not needed for several years.

“What we are doing is investing in Swindon, which I think is better than sitting on our hands and doing nothing.

“Not all debt is bad debt and it is this council’s opinion that this level is manageable. In the long term we will start to see a return on some investments.

“Wichelstowe is a perfect example of this. We have invested £50m there but are close to announcing a joint venture partner, so we will see that back and possibly more besides.

“The Kimmerfield car park is another example. We borrowed £15m to have it built but over its lifetime we will more than see that repaid.”

Coun Renard said a large chunk of the debt is down to investing in schools. Over the past few years many of the town’s primary schools have been expanded, while the council is also responsible for building new primary schools.

“Although they often end up being run by an academy, the Government does not provide funding unless they are a free school or an academy,” Coun Renard said.

“We have to put up that money because we have an obligation to provide places, but a few of those and the debt starts to mount.”

But the council’s Labour group leader Jim Grant said the news showed a lack of control by the leadership over council finances.

He said: “Since I have become Labour Group Leader I have repeatedly questioned and challenged why the Conservative Group have embarked on such a significant spending splurge which means the council is spending nearly £10m each year on debt charges.

“Just over 10 years ago, when the Conservatives took control of the council, they inherited a £6m budget surplus from Labour.

“Now, they’re embarking on a debt of £300m and what concerns me is that they have no strategy to bring this debt down.

“In fact they’re intensely relaxed about the levels of debt they’re developing.”