Woking council may face £1bn hit from property investment spree

Figures suggest insolvency-threatened council in Surrey faces huge write-down on its assets

Woking council risks a financial hit worth 1bn amid a government investigation into the local authority's debt-fuelled investment spree in hotels and skyscrapers.

The Surrey council is on the brink of insolvency, with a possible section 114 notice, signalling it cannot balance its budget, believed to be imminent.