A council’s plans to charge for using its public toilets has been described as “scandalous” by a local councillor who has launched a ‘free to pee’ campaign to fight the move.
Malton Town Council is planning to introduce a 40p charge to use toilets in the town’s Market Place when it takes over management of the conveniences from North Yorkshire Council.
But Norton division councillor Keane Duncan has called on the town council to reconsider the plans and has launched a campaign to highlight the issue.
Cllr Duncan said: “This is a deeply unfair deal for Malton.
“Other towns will continue to enjoy free public toilets under North Yorkshire Council — and toilets in Pickering and Helmsley will even be upgraded.
“Meanwhile, Malton is being singled out with our residents and visitors forced to pay for a basic necessity.”
Members of North Yorkshire Council executive agreed at a meeting last week to hand control of the toilets to the town council.
As part of the deal, the town council will receive a one-off grant of £57,000 from North Yorkshire Council to pay for a refurbishment of the facilities.
Both organisations agreed that the town’s Wentworth Street toilets, which are a four-minute walk from the Market Place facilities, will be permanently closed when the transfer goes ahead.
Cllr Duncan said the decision to charge for use of the toilets was made by the council at a “behind closed doors” meeting in February.
He added: ““Agreeing this 40p charge, in private and without any public consultation, is scandalous.
“Decisions like this should be made with the community. Residents deserve openness, accountability and genuine consultation.
“I’m urging the mayor, Cllr Burr, and her fellow councillors to urgently reconsider this decision and ensure it remains ‘free to pee’ in Malton.”
Minutes of February’s town council meeting show councillors agreed to introduce card payment machines as part of a refurbishment programme, with charges being levied on users once the improvements had been completed.
The issue was discussed in a private session when the public was excluded.
The council agreed that the £10,000 annual maintenance fee for the conveniences would come from the authority’s community infrastructure levy budget.
A spokesperson for Malton Town Council said they would be issuing a statement on the issue at a later date.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service has contacted Malton mayor, Cllr Lindsay Burr, for a comment.
The decision by North Yorkshire Council to hand over control of the toilets is part of the so-called ‘double devolution’ deal following the launch of North Yorkshire Council in 2023, which sees services handed down to town and parish councils.