BOLTON’S Green party believes money controversially awarded by the council to local law firm Asons could have been spent keeping road crossing patrols operating across the borough.

In its budget proposals, announced last month, the council said it is looking to axe all the remaining school crossing posts, with 40 jobs set to go for a saving of £200,000.

Now Alan Johnson, leader of the Green party in Bolton has questioned why a grant of £300,000 handed to Asons Solicitors to help redevelop its new Churchgate offices could not have been used to retain the frontline service. Mr Johnson said: “A recent report states, that since 2010 Bolton has lost 45 per cent of it’s school crossing patrols, higher than anywhere else in Greater Manchester, and now in the next round of cuts, 40 more jobs are to be lost.

"When one compares this to the £300,000 grant given to Asons, a company that it seems would have stayed in the town anyway, you might think this money could have and should been used to avert cuts to this vital service.”