EASTLEIGH council has revealed it is investing £3.6 million for Marks & Spencer to come to the town.

The council has announced the investment days after admitting to borrowing a substantial sum to underpin the deal for the store to be attracted to council-owned land.

The figure was released after repeated requests from the Daily Echo for the council to reveal its investment in the store.

But there is still no answers on where that money is being spent on the project.

Traders have criticised the council for giving the store “preferential treatment” when bosses refused repeated requests to say how they were spending the money earlier this week.

Now a statement released by the authority has revealed that the store is being leased on “standard commercial terms.”

The project sparked anger with Eastleigh traders, who previously told the Daily Echo that M & S may be getting a preferential deal from the council in a bid to lure them to the borough.

But after keeping tight-lipped about the sum they borrowed to fund the project, officials have now announced it is costing around £3.6million to build the new facility.

The council has not specified how this money is being spent and when asked refused to comment.

The statement said: “The Council, last year, approved planning permission for the development of a Marks & Spencer Foodhall store in Eastleigh. The Council owns the land on which the proposed new store is to be built and will be investing around £3.6m to build the new facility. Marks & Spencer will be leasing the new facility from the Council on standard commercial terms.

“Discussions are ongoing to conclude the various permissions that are required before work can commence on site.

“The new Marks & Spencer Foodhall store will be another addition to the Councils’ extensive and nationally acclaimed property portfolio that produces significant income each year.”

Liberal Democrat council leader Keith House, pictured left, also confirmed the council had entered a “straightforward, usual commercial terms investment.”

A spokesperson for Marks and Spencer reiterated this and added they would not reveal how much the company was paying in rent as it was confidential.

The company had not responded when questioned whether the council had built the store to Marks and Spencer’s specifications at the time of going to press.

The 16,000 foot food store will be build on land off the roundabout linking Southampton Road and Twyford Road and is expected to open in October this year, creating 50 new jobs.

Planners at the council, which has an overall budget of £9million, gave the scheme the go ahead in February last year.

Pip Smith, co-owner of Smith Butchers, in Market Street, said that it appeared that Marks and Spencer was being “gift aided to come in” and questioned whether this was value for money.

He said the supermarket could draw trade away from town centre businesses, including his, the grocers, takeaway shops and cafes as it was not in town centre.

Mr Smith added that the money could have been better spent on reducing rates for current businesses to attract more retailers in or free parking.

“It’s grossly unfair using public funds to fund other businesses.

“It’s using a proportion of our council tax money to entice other industry into the area. It’s not going to benefit me.”

Alan Banks, of Anglo Vapour, in Market Street, said that money could have been spent elsewhere, adding: “That’s ridiculous.

“I would have thought that a company like Marks and Spencer would pay for their own building.

“How much rent are they going to get for that? How quickly does that pay back taxpayers’ money?

“They should be doing more to make the town centre of Eastleigh more attractive.

“Why not look after us rather than Marks and Spencer. It sounds like they are getting special treatment.”

Dia Chakravarty, Political Director at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, previously said: “There appears to be a lot of confusion around this arrangement.

“Residents are entitled to raise questions and ask for clarifications, which the council has a responsibility to address.

“At a time when councils across the country are having to find necessary savings, the authorities must take particular care when spending taxpayers’ money.”