Mike Fennel Politics Show South West

The uproar over council tax rises has left many local authorities looking desperately for ways to save money rather than face another double digit increase in April 2004.

Closure of public loos could be a black day for Devon

Some district councils have even looked at the cost of spending a penny.

In mid Devon the council is looking at closing the majority of its public toilets in a bid to make sure 2004's council tax does not rise by more than the rate of inflation.

The first public toilets were introduced by the Victorians.

Some were quite elaborate, despite their very basic function.

But since their heyday they have been going down the pan at the rate of about 400 a year.

It is a similar story throughout the South West.

It costs West Devon nearly �300,000 a year to maintain its public toilets.

In 2002 a quarter of them were up for closure in a cost cutting exercise. In the event they closed just two.

The council was able to reprieve the other five by persuading parish councils to contribute 30% towards their costs.

Mid Devon faces a similar dilemma

That is despite the fact that the Milton Abbot toilet has been upgraded to meet new disabled access standards, the cost of which has been another significant factor in closure decisions.

Closure leaves mid Devon with just four public toilets, two in Tiverton, one each in Crediton and Cullompton.

Closure affects villagers

But what about the villages where the public toilets would disappear.

In places like Hemyock there are fears villagers will be seriously inconvenienced.

The local toilets opened 20 years ago only after a hard-fought campaign. One resident said;

Before that trades people were knocking on people's doors to use their loos, which was very unsatisfactory.

I'm afraid what's going to happen if they do close the toilets we will get a lot of problems with visitors coming in and nowhere to go.

Toilets have been closed in North Devon but the council has reinvested the money in a new generation of super-loos, which are more efficient for cleaning purposes, easier to use and more difficult for vandals to besmirch.

Soap, water and hot air dryer are all activated by touch control.

... And they are unisex, partly in acknowledgement of a previous injustice.

But no such luxury is in prospect for villagers in mid Devon.

If the council does not make a U bend at the end of the month they will have the option of saving their toilets by making a financial contribution, considerably higher than spending a penny!

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