By Rachel Alexander

Copyright birminghammail

The chairman of the Darlaston regeneration board has announced he hopes to ‘build bridges’ following controversy around the scheme. Manjit Jhooty, also chairman of the Walsall and Bloxwich towns deal boards, said he welcomes the challenge to ensure that all voices are heard. READ MORE: Anger as council accused of hiding £20m regeneration plans Last year, the town of Darlaston was awarded £20million by the government’s Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities to be spent over 10 years. But over recent months, a row has broken out over who should be on the board to decide how the pot of money should be spent. A council-run board of professionals was set up, chaired by Manjit Jhooty, the CEO of a pharmacy chain based in Walsall, Jhoots Group. He is also the chairman of the Walsall and Bloxwich towns deal board, where each town was awarded £21.3million. Manjit and the council-run Darlaston board met in the King Street library last Thursday and were met by a few dozen people protesting against the board and the lack of transparency. Manjit said: “At the first meeting, there were some voices outside the library. I went and actually spoke to some of them when I got there. “The good news is I’m looking to build bridges with everybody and have everyone’s voice heard, that’s the key thing for me. And I don’t mind challenge, because challenge actually allows us to think about the broader spectrum. “The board meeting went well. Councillor Ward said he wanted to see more residents on the board, which is where I’m now moving forward. “I can reassure you that we’re writing to 8,500 residents in Darlaston, so we’re going to have every voice heard. The second thing is we’re writing to 35 community groups within the area to see what their priorities are.” Darlaston South ward member, Councillor Paul Bott, said he had been promised by the council’s previous leader, Councillor Garry Perry, that the £20million board would be made up of residents of Darlaston. But after the council set up a board made up of officers from the authority, police and housing associations instead, a rival board was formed of residents who had registered their interest to be on the council’s board, but ‘never heard back’. When asked about the community representation, Manjit said: “Just so you know, there are residents on the board, it’s not excluding anybody. “But I have also got other stakeholders that need to be involved in the broader spectrum as per the plan for neighbourhoods from a governor’s point of view. “Everybody on that board has routes within Darlaston. I’ve got a business there, which is the pharmacy next to the health centre. My dad used to work in Darlaston for 20 years, so I know a lot about Darlaston.” Last month Manjit was named in a BBC report which speaks of a failing pharmacy chain, Jhoots Pharmacies. The report stated that all the pharmacies in the Jhoots brand are owned, at least in part, by either Sarbjit or Manjit Jhooty. Manjit is adamant that his business, which is Pasab Ltd and Jhoots Healthcare, is entirely separate from his brother’s, and that his pharmacies are all operating as normal. Both Manjit and Sarbjit were pictured in a 2023 story about a £17.4m funding package from HSBC which led to six Lloyds Pharmacy branches in Wales being taken on by Jhoots Pharmacy. Four of those six sites were named in a story on WalesOnline last month as those which were ‘in crisis’. Manjit said: “The only reason I was in that picture was because HSBC banked me as well. They’re my bank. “Whilst my brother uses the same brand name, it is a very independent organisation and they have their own way of working. “So the assurance I can give you is that my stores are open, serving communities. Darlaston is one of my stores, you can pop in there if you wish to.” Manjit said chairing the regeneration boards is in line with his faith: “My faith is Sikhism. I like to give back and help the community. That’s really where I’m at now, so I’m trying to give back as much as I can.”