MARGATE FC have suffered yet another huge setback to their hopes of returning to Thanet.

A Thanet council cabinet meeting on Thursday night was thought likely to finally agree to recommend approval for the club's plans to rebuild Hartsdown Park.

Now the the council has informed the club it would offer 125-year leases on all the commercial development planned, but would only be prepared to offer a licence to operate the facilities which would need to be renewed at regular intervals.

A club statement said: "This would not offer Margate Football Club the security of tenure it requires to meet its obligations to the Football Association, The Football Foundation and the Football Conference. The sole purpose of a licence is to remove all security of tenure.

"The proposed developement has been entirely based on the intention of the council to provide a lease on the whole demise. The Directors have been left in shock as, at no time throughout the nine months of the negotiations, have the council ever intimated, suggested or discussed any vehicle that would not provide the security required by the club.

"Had this matter ever been raised for discussion in the past, the investors that have kept the cub alive through its most difficult period would never had made those funds available."

The club are due to contact the Conference chief executive John Moules about the latest development.

Margate have struggled to survive since leaving the town to ground-share, first at Dover, and then Ashford where they are currently playing their home Nationwide South games.