FOI Request - Council Jurisdictional Authority

Request 101003822149

This inquiry seeks to clarify the corporate footprint, governance arrangements, and jurisdictional authority of Moray Council and its affiliated entities.

1. Subsidiaries, LLPs, and Charitable Trusts
Please provide a full list of all active and dissolved subsidiaries, Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs), charitable trusts, and nominee companies in which Moray Council holds ownership, control, or designated membership. For each entity, include:
a) Registered name
b) Legal structure (e.g. Ltd, LLP, charitable trust)
c) Companies House or OSCR registration number
d) Date of incorporation and dissolution (if applicable)
e) Governance arrangements (e.g. shareholder agreements, council-appointed directors)
Known entities include:
• Moray Leisure Ltd
• Moray Integration Joint Board
• Grampian Valuation Joint Board
• Common Good Funds
• Connected Charitable Trust Funds
• Moray Council Nominees Ltd

2. Legal Instruments and Financial Agreements
Please supply:
a) Copies or summaries of partnership agreements, shareholder resolutions, and any financial instruments (e.g. bonds, promissory notes, leaseback arrangements) issued by or involving these entities
b) Details of any external financial partnerships, including involvement from:
c) Pension Insurance Corporation
d) Assured Guaranty
e) Private developers or institutional investors

3. Jurisdictional Basis for Enforcement
Please clarify:
a) The legal framework under which enforcement actions (e.g. leisure service charges, care contracts, asset transfers) are issued by council-linked entities
b) Whether these actions are administered under statutory authority or commercial contract law
c) Whether individuals interacting with these entities are presumed to be contracting with the council directly or with the corporate entity

Clarification sought and received 21-07-2025

Response 12-08-2025 

1. As a statutory body, the council has no subsidiaries. It has links to a number of other bodies in various ways.

Councillors are appointed to a number of outside bodies to represent various interests. The latest appointment report can be found on the Council’s website and is here: 

https://moray.cmis.uk.com/moray/Document.ashx?czJKcaeAi5tUFL1DTL2UE4zNRBcoShgo=5gokCx399mdtikqVDJgYvqisHfwOMjh7G5RZVX15HcBlgXNzv87%2B9A%3D%3D&rUzwRPf%2BZ3zd4E7Ikn8Lyw%3D%3D=pwRE6AGJFLDNlh225F5QMaQWCtPHwdhUfCZ%2FLUQzgA2uL5jNRG4jdQ%3D%3D&mCTIbCubSFfXsDGW9IXnlg%3D%3D=hFflUdN3100%3D&kCx1AnS9%2FpWZQ40DXFvdEw%3D%3D=hFflUdN3100%3D&uJovDxwdjMPoYv%2BAJvYtyA%3D%3D=ctNJFf55vVA%3D&FgPlIEJYlotS%2BYGoBi5olA%3D%3D=NHdURQburHA%3D&d9Qjj0ag1Pd993jsyOJqFvmyB7X0CSQK=ctNJFf55vVA%3D&WGewmoAfeNR9xqBux0r1Q8Za60lavYmz=ctNJFf55vVA%3D&WGewmoAfeNQ16B2MHuCpMRKZMwaG1PaO=ctNJFf55vVA%3D

Information of bodies which the Council has significant control can be found in the Council’s published annual accounts, to be found here: http://www.moray.gov.uk/moray_standard/page_44100.html

There is no register within the Council of Council interests on limited companies.

Information on company appointments which the Council is involved with can be found on the Companies House website. For ease of reference, please find the link to their website here: https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/search?q=moray+council

Companies which the council have a direct interest in:

Moray leisure limited https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/SC145750
Moray council nominate 3 directors on the board of this company which provide leisure services to the public. The Council lease the ground on which the Leisure Centre is buildt to Moray Leisure Limited and provide an annual grant to the company. There is a combined pricing model for service users along with Council run leisure services.

Seemis group https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/officers/p51QVDauo-hhec2xT24czOgc5mQ/appointments
Moray council are a corporate member of this joint local authority group which maintains software for school administration.

There are a number of limited liability partnerships set up with agricultural tenants as a mechanism to lease small pockets of agricultural ground.

2. In law, everything the council does is rooted in statute. Councils can only do what the law allows, so everything has statutory authority.
As for debt enforcement, it depends on how the debt arises. Sums owed to the council can arise through statutory or contractual avenues. Tax is a debt that arises by operation of law and is collected/enforced by operation of law, so no contract is required. If the council enters into a contract that is allowed by statute and the other party defaults, then the council may pursue a legal action for breach of contract.

Moray Council applies to the Sheriff Court for a Council Tax Summary Warrant.
This is an administrative process, as once the Sheriff is satisfied with our application and grants us a warrant, a surcharge of 10% of the outstanding balance will be added to the account and the debt will be passed to the council’s firm of Sheriff Officers for collection.

3. The council was created by statute the Local Government etc (S) Act 1994. It is not a company that has been created for a specific purpose.