MINEHEAD residents face paying an extra £33 a year to fund a rise in town council spending.

The town council’s finance and staffing committee was told on Monday that the annual precept would have to be increased by over £37,000 because the authority was now paying for services previously provided by the district and county councils.

As an example, the cost of maintaining the town’s public toilets has risen from £5,000 last year to an estimated £70,000 for 2019-20.

Committee members agreed to recommend that the full council accept the increases at its meeting on January 22.

The increased town council precept, which has yet to be approved, is detailed in today’s Free Press (January 11).