Row breaks out over town's public toilet obsession

A bizarre row has broken out over a seaside town’s “loo fixation”. Town councillors at Newbiggin-by-the Sea in Northumberland have been panned by their political opponents for supposedly proposing too many public toilets. Critics have even called for the coastal community to be rechristened “Newbiggin-by-the-Toilet-Seat” or “Newbiggin-on-the-Bog.”

But the councillors accuse their rivals of trying to “sabotage” their grand public loo plan – a “number one priority” for residents. The row was sparked by local members on Northumberland County Council, Jim Lang, who represents Seaton with Newbiggin West and Liz Simpson, of Newbiggin Central and East. They expressed “surprise and concern” at Newbiggin Town Council’s plans to spend £65,000 of taxpayers’ cash on a toilet block at Watts Lane.



The duo claim the town council has already agreed to contribute towards a new library in the town, which would include new public conveniences. In a joint statement, they said: “By coming forward with their own plans to build further public toilets on a controversial site, the town council run the risk of wasting valuable public resources on what many local people are describing as a vanity project.

"The town already has a ‘super loo’, the town council also contribute towards the toilets at the bus station and now they seem to want to build another toilet to go with the toilets in the new library. The people of Newbiggin will rightly be asking how many toilets does the town need ... and couldn’t the town council be spending the money it raises through its precept on something other than more toilets.”