COUNCIL officers in Darlington were forced to climb down this week after throwing a veil of secrecy over £27,600 of grants given to local businesses.

The awards were announced by the newly-formed financial incentives panel earlier this week.

According to a council press release it was introduced following "the council's new democratic arrangements".

But the release named only one of the companies and council officers at first refused point blank to identify the others to the D&S Times.

Despite the companies being given public money, officers said they had to honour requests for confidentiality.

However, on Wednesday, Coun David Lyonette, chairman of the three-member panel, sympathised with the D&S Times' assertion that the public had a right to know to whom their money had been given.

But he said council officers had told him not to reveal the identity of the businesses.

"Personally, I agree that this is good news and should be made public, but I am being led by the officers on this," he said. "They say if the companies themselves want confidentiality then we will stand by that."

But yesterday, after several calls to the town hall, Mr Richard Alty, head of regeneration and planning, eventually agreed that, as the grants were being made from public money, the public had a right to know where it was going.

"The forms we sent out to the companies had a confidentiality clause, which meant we had to go back to them for permission to publish their names," he said.

"We now realise the system was wrong and your inquiry has brought that to light. I guarantee that in future all such grants will be made public."

The four companies who agreed to being identified were: Cleveland Studios, Direct Signs Northern, MRI Worldwide and Bodycote Metallurgical Coatings.

One other company refused to be named and the managing director of the other was away yesterday.

Coun Heather Scott, Conservative, found the whole situation ridiculous.

"Surely it would make sense to give this scheme as much publicity as possible," she said. "We want to encourage local businesses to come forward and want to help as many as possible.

"To keep the names of these companies secret is ridiculous. Anything like this should be in the public arena immediately."

Cleveland Studios, the only company originally named, is an industrial engraving business best known for its range of pet identification tags.

Mr Richard Newhouse, owner, said: "The grant will be of great help in enabling us to buy an urgently needed engraving machine to help cope with the growing demand for the tags."

l The panel has £100,000 to help local businesses develop. The council claims up to 40 new jobs will be created from the first six awards