Last modified on Tue 2 Mar 2021 12.47 EST
Plans to use £100,000 of taxpayersâ money to underwrite an unveiling ceremony for a statue of Margaret Thatcher in her home town have been scrapped.
Councillors in Grantham, Lincolnshire were heavily criticised when they voted in December to set aside £100,000 to cover the costs of an event to reveal the statue, hoping donations would recoup the money.
The decision reignited divisions in the town over the statue and Thatcherâs legacy, and when the matter was put before a scrutiny committee on Monday it was decided delays caused by the coronavirus pandemic would provide enough time to raise the money through private donations.