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Woking Corruption

Ray Morgan

Chief Executive Officer|1989-2021 (32 years)
Under FRC investigation (opened February 2025)

Architect of the borrowing strategy who led the council for 32 years and oversaw the accumulation of nearly £2 billion in debt. The Grant Thornton Public Interest Report found that Morgan exercised 'excessive influence' over the council and its commercial activities. Awarded an OBE in 2007 for services to local government - MP Will Forster has since called for it to be stripped.

Key Actions

  • Drove the creation of the Thameswey Group and its network of 13 subsidiary companies
  • Authorised £250 million in lending to GolDev Woking Ltd, a company with virtually no independent assets
  • Maintained a £3 million discretionary Opportunities Fund with minimal oversight or accountability
  • Championed the Victoria Square development, which ultimately cost over £700 million
  • Exercised what Grant Thornton described as 'excessive influence' over council decision-making
  • Retired in March 2021 before the full scale of the financial crisis became apparent

Details

Raymond Nigel Morgan OBE joined Woking Borough Council in April 1989 as Director of Financial Services. He became Executive Director in May 2000, Acting CEO in 2005, and was permanently appointed CEO in April 2006. He served until his retirement in March 2021 - a total of 32 years, making him one of the longest-serving council chief executives in the country. He was awarded an OBE in 2007 for services to local government.

Under Morgan's leadership, the council adopted an increasingly aggressive commercial strategy, borrowing from the Public Works Loan Board to fund investments through a network of council-owned companies. The Thameswey Group, which Morgan was instrumental in creating, grew to encompass 13 companies operating across energy, housing, property development, and other sectors. Morgan held directorships in over 20 council-linked companies including Thameswey Ltd, Thameswey Energy Ltd, Thameswey Housing Ltd, Victoria Square Woking Ltd, Export House Ltd, and multiple Rutland (Woking) entities.

Morgan maintained a discretionary 'Opportunities Fund' of approximately £3 million, which allowed him to authorise spending without normal committee approval processes. The Grant Thornton report identified this fund as an example of the inadequate governance oversight that characterised the council's operations.

The Grant Thornton Public Interest Report, published in November 2024, described Morgan as the 'principal architect' of the investment decisions that led to the council's debt. It found he had 'excessive influence' over decision-making and that the culture he fostered discouraged challenge from other officers and elected members. The report described a council where the CEO's authority was rarely questioned.

Morgan retired in March 2021, alongside Deputy CEO Douglas Spinks and Monitoring Officer Peter Bryant. Their collective departure came before the full extent of the financial crisis became apparent to new management and the incoming Liberal Democrat administration. He resigned from most of his company directorships on 31 March 2021. None of the departing senior trio had significant professional experience outside of Woking Borough Council.

In February 2025, the Financial Reporting Council opened a formal investigation into Ray Morgan's conduct, marking the first regulatory action against an individual connected to the Woking scandal. MP Will Forster has called for Morgan's OBE to be stripped.

Sources

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