No relief as poll hits public loos
A DRIVE to halt the loss of public toilets has been thwarted by the election.
Ex-chancellor Philip Hammond committed to providing tax relief on loos, making it less expensive for councils to maintain them.
According to figures published in 2018 at least 673 toilets have been closed since 2010.
Cornwall and the Isle of Wight had shut more than 90 per cent of their conveniences while in 37 council areas there were no toilets at all.
Currently, each loo block costs a council between £5,000 and £15,000 in business rates a year, on top of cleaning, energy and any maintenance costs.
The legislation to exempt them from tax was being steered by Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth but fell when PM Boris Johnson prorogued Parliament after the summer.
Attempts to get it on the books again came to an end when the election was called. Raymond Martin, managing director of the British Toilet Association, said: “This is a very important issue. We have been campaigning to get this change done for a decade now and had hoped that after Mr Hammond made his ann- ouncement in 2017 it was going to happen.”
But he said the proroguing of Parliament and then the election had stalled it.
He went on: “This is an issue of human dignity and health. The lack of public toilets means that it becomes difficult for many people to go out. It is linked to reviving our high streets and enabling people to get out and enjoy their lives.”
Age UK backs the campaign because many pensioners are affected.
Charity director Caroline Abrahams said: “Having easy access to wellmaintained toilets is important to most of us but especially for many older people.
“Worrying about being caught short or having an accident in public can have a devastating impact on people in later life, resulting in many being stuck at home and cut off from the rest of society.”
A government spokesman said: “We recognise the importance of public lavatories and will seek to introduce legislation that would provide business rate relief when parliamentary time allows.”