THE COUNCIL is coming under fire for collecting money for a dormant company set up to boost business in Leytonstone.

Waltham Forest Council has been collecting an annual business levy on behalf of the publically funded E11 Business Improvement District 2 (BID) since April 2015.

A Companies House check on E11 BID2 confirms the company is dormant and was incorporated on June 30, 2015.

But more than two months before its incorporated date, rate payers throughout Leytonstone received a levy bill on April 28, 2015.

E11 BID2 replaced the controversial E11 BID company, which racked up debts rising to £80,000 forcing a police investigation into possible fraud in 2014.

Rate payer and restaurant owner Shah Ahmed is disputing the bid levy over the uncertainty and is demanding to know “what is going on?”

He said: “I was quite excited at first with the bid concept, and was very much involved setting up the first bid company as a shareholder.

“But once it was set up it started to go downhill because of bad management, lack of information from the council, lack of clarity on the projects being delivered and no relationship with the businesses involved.”

Approximately 280 rate payers in Leytonstone pay E11 BID2 tens of thousands of pounds, which is collected by the council.

Every rate payer pays one per cent of its rateable value, which can be as a little as £50 per annum for a small high street shop to tens of thousands for the Tesco Superstore, in Gainsborough road.

A number of public bodies and council-owned buildings also contribute towards the bid levy every year.

Among the public bodies listed as rate payers are George Tomlinson and Davies Lane primary schools, Leytonstone Library, Waltham Forest CCG in Kirkdale House, and Pastures Youth Centre.

According to E11 BID2’s website, it says it returns this levy by nurturing Leytonstone’s “business environment” and improving the “pedestrian, cycling and road networks to support the local economy”.

If rate payers do not fork out the sum, they are then taken to court by the council.

Mr Ahmed said he is facing further uncertainty after the rateable value of his restaurant went up from £10,000 to £28,000 on April 1.

He added: “They are taking our hard earned cash without delivering any of the goods and now we are in difficult times with my rateable value nearly trebling.”

Waltham Forest Council did not respond to the Guardian’s request for comment in time for deadline.