Tories hit out at £70k toilet tax

Plans to bring in a toilet tax – a 50p charge – to use five of Brighton’s busiest public toilets along the seafront have been criticised by the Conservatives.

The budget proposal came under fire in a town hall debate last week, with councillors and officials warned that the fee would hit hardest those in greatest need.

And the council’s own “equality impact assessment” said: “It may have a disproportionate impact on disabled people, children, older people, homeless people and general accessibility.”

Now, the Conservative group leader on Brighton and Hove City Council, Alistair McNair, and Councillor Anne Meadows, who speaks on finance for the party, have voiced their concerns.

Councillor McNair and Councillor Meadows said: “The Conservative group is shocked but not surprised that Labour wants to introduce charges to high footfall public toilets. They are clobbering residents left, right and centre.

“Just when shops and businesses are really struggling with national insurance rises, a cost of living crisis and exorbitant car parking increases, Labour brings in a charge that will hit shoppers but, more importantly in this case, the residents, the disabled, those with poor health and families, which will affect how they live their daily lives.

“It might only be 50p to start with but it will quickly go up like every other tax and charge in this city.

“It’s one more thing for people to think about. And one more thing to put people off coming here.

“In addition, the administration of this charge will cost more than 50p so it will not bring in extra funding as staff costs will far exceed the outlay of the costs of implementing it.

“The Labour council’s own equality impact assessment says it will affect the community as a whole and especially disabled people, children, older people and homeless people – all the people you’d think Labour would care about and that councils should be protecting first and foremost.”

The council’s draft budget said that the charge would be brought in at five toilets – Dalton’s Bastion, the Colonnade, Shelter Hall and the West Pier Arches, in Brighton and King’s Esplanade, in Hove.

The draft budget said that the charges should raise about £70,000 although it was unclear how much the council would have to spend on barriers, payment systems, admin and subsequent maintenance.

Labour councillor Jacob Taylor told the council’s Place Overview and Scrutiny Committee last Thursday (19 February) that it was a modest proposal limited to “the really high-volume city centre toilets” visited by many tourists as well as residents.

The revenue that flowed from the toilet tax would, he said, be used to fund capital costs – and the council has included £1 million in the budget for renovating and refurbishing public toilets.

Councillor Taylor, the deputy leader of the council, said that Labour had reopened and refurbished 13 public toilets since taking office in May 2023 after public toilets became a key issue during the local election campaign.

Some concerns have been expressed about Changing Places toilets – accessible toilets specially equipped for people with disabilities to include hoists and adult-sized changing benches.

Several were part-funded with hundreds of thousands of pounds from the government including at Dalton’s Bastion and the Colonnade.

It is not clear whether users would be covered by charges or be exempt from them but some disability groups have questioned how charges could be considered equitable or acceptable given the council’s Accessible City Strategy.

The meeting last week was told that the overall business case had not yet been drawn up although the equality impact assessment was dated last November. No public consultation has taken place.

A decision is due at the annual budget council meeting on Thursday 26 February which is due to start at 4.30pm at Hove Town Hall. The meeting is scheduled to be webcast.