THE organiser of Clacton’s Christmas light switch-on is set to pull the plug on this year’s event… after kicking up a stink over portable toilets.

Clacton Town Partnership last month said it feared the decision to place portable loos on the town square could force it to cancel the town’s Christmas light switch on in December.

Tendring Council has installed portable loos on the square until December 21 while it refurbishes the Rosemary Road toilets.

But now Graham Webb, chairman of Clacton Town Partnership, said he will not be running the event unless he gets a guarantee the loos will be removed.

He said: “Unless the council give me a cast iron guarantee that the disgusting portaloos are completely removed from the town square and the immediate surrounding area before December 1, then sadly I will not be organising the Christmas light switch on.

“This is a family event and these toilets and the growing number of drinkers and others it attracts is not conducive to a family event.

“It is not the fault of the Clacton Town Partnership as there are plenty of much more suitable places for these toilets.

“Hopefully Tendring Council will see sense, but I am not optimistic.”

He added: “I am a volunteer and have been happy to work hard for the town doing these events through the last four years. This situation is not acceptable to me and I understand people’s anger.

“I still hope this can be resolved as I had some new things planned but if not, I will happily let someone else take it on.”

Mick Skeels, Tendring Council’s cabinet member for leisure and tourism, which includes responsibility for toilets, said that work refurbishing the facilities in Rosemary Road, Clacton, was ahead of schedule.

“If the work continues to remain ahead of schedule then the toilets will be opened earlier than the scheduled date, and the temporary facilities removed earlier,” he added.

“However, we don’t want to rush the work and cut corners, otherwise we would end up with a second-class job.

“It is disappointing to hear that the Clacton Town Partnership feels unable to put on the Christmas lights event with the temporary toilets where they are, especially when we have received positive public feedback about their location and how well the council has maintained them during the refurbishment.”

“We will of course endeavour to work with the Partnership to support the event as we do every year – for example with the Christmas tree and with our pantomime stars meeting the crowds – if the event does indeed go ahead.”