A DILAPIDATED town hall at the centre of a row between two neighbouring councils should be given away, an MP has said.

Stockton South Conservative MP James Wharton has called on Stockton Borough Council to gift Thornaby Town Hall to the town following a long-running battle over its future.

Property developer Python Properties announced yesterday that it was pulling out of a £795,000 scheme to buy and transform the Grade II-listed building, largely, it said, due to Thornaby Town Council’s unwillingness to co-operate with the firm.

As well restoring faded civic rooms, it was planning to create 25 small business units.

Last month, the town council won a civil action against its landlord, Stockton council, when a judge ruled that staff could not be evicted from two rooms in the decaying hall.

Mr Wharton said Stockton council had failed to look after the iconic building.

He said: “Now it’s time to give it to people who really care about its future. The people of Thornaby and Thornaby Town Council should be given a chance to take on its care.”

He added: “Thornaby people know how important the town’s history is and have endured the heartache of seeing Stockton let their town hall go to rack and ruin.”

Mr Wharton said he had written to Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, seeking confirmation that a transfer could be made.

Councillor Steve Walmsley who sits on Stockton borough and Thornaby town councils, said the town’s “spiritual home” should be kept in public ownership.

Peter Broome, partner at Python Properties, said the decision to withdraw from the scheme had been taken with a “heavy heart”.

He said: “It is particularly disappointing to see that the group that stood to gain the most from our scheme, Thornaby Town Council, has succeeded in its aim to block the regeneration of this historic building, create a local landmark to be proud of and most importantly bring much needed jobs to Thornaby.”

Councillor Bob Cook, cabinet member for regeneration and transport at Stockton council said: “We understand and appreciate fully Python Properties’ decision, as they have been equally frustrated by the actions of the town council.

“We now need to look at other options to ensure the town hall doesn’t continue to deteriorate further and will continue to be attractive to developers. However, in the current economic climate and given these recent difficult experiences, this will not be easy.”