Property Week has learned the Labour-led council has launched an inquiry into the actions of the previous Conservative administration to sell the site to Capco for £110m in September 2012.

Minutes of the council’s latest cabinet meeting state: “The council notes that at that time, other comparative land sales were significantly higher in the borough and that many of the terms of the deal were bad value for the residents of the borough.

“The council therefore supports the full investigation into the advice received and the actions taken by those involved, which led to this situation.”