A POLITICAL row about the running of a leading Worcester charity can today be revealed - with the city council's leader accused of orchestrating a Labour 'power grab'.

Worcester Municipal Charities spends more than £1 million a year on worthy causes around the city to help the needy.

It is managed by a board of 19 trustees, with six of them nominated from Worcester City Council.

Normally the six are split on political grounds, with half from Labour and half Conservative-backed, but the Tories have been left smarting after losing influence.

Labour Councillor Adrian Gregson, the city council's leader who was tasked with making the new appointments, has handed four members of his own party positions as trustees.

Labour councillors Paul Denham and Geoff Williams have been re-appointed as well as ex-city councillor Rob Peachey, while another former Labour politician Richard Boorn, a former cabinet member for finance, has joined them.

Mr Boorn will replace the trustee role held by Tory activist Stan Markwell in November, with Conservative councillors Roger Knight and Alan Feeney the only two Tories still involved.

The move has sparked a furious response from Councillor Marc Bayliss, the leader of Worcester's Conservatives, who has called it "clearly biased".

The outraged Tory group leader has accused Labour of "stuffing an important local charity with party cronies", calling it "an abuse of power". 

But Councillor Gregson has responded by saying it is "wrong to describe them as political appointments".

Cllr Bayliss said: "What he is trying to do is pack this charity with Labour nominees, it's clearly biased and completely goes against what we've done in the past.

"This is a charity which spends over £1 million a year and he's stuffed it full of Labour people - I'm very sad he's decided to break with tradition."

Cllr Gregson said: "The city council has a list of about five bodies to which we appoint delegates, some are done annually and some every three or four years depending on the organisation.

"The leader is asked for nominees and if there's more than one person up for one place, it's up to the leader.

"There were too many names on the list so I had to make my choices.

"These are not political appointments and to try to paint them as such is wrong, it's about people being able to commit to it and give help to a charity doing very sensitive work."

The matter has now been called in to the city council's scrutiny committee for investigation.

The charity, based at The Foregate, exists to help the needy in Worcester and meets monthly to dish out grants.

It also owns two blocks of sheltered housing comprising 32 flats, off Foregate Street and New Street.