A Burnham-On-Sea resident has hit out at Somerset County Council for spending money on publishing thousands of copies of a free newspaper while public services, such as toilets, are shutting in the town due to council financial cutbacks.
The county council’s Your Somerset newspaper is posted through thousands of letterboxes in Burnham and across the county on a quarterly basis.
But Victoria Street resident Tom Kyffin, pictured here, says the money spent on the publication should be put to better use in the town.
He told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “It’s ridiculous that when public toilets are closing in Burnham and other council-run services are under threat due to financial cut-backs, money is being spent on a publication like this, which is nothing but self-glorification for the county council.”
“The publication does not appear to be funded by advertising, so the costs must come from tax payers while vital council services are closing around us. It’s very wasteful and also damaging to the environment.”
But Somerset County Council defended the publication when contacted by Burnham-On-Sea.com on Thursday (July 17th).
Spokeswoman Jan Hookings said: “Somerset County Council is fully committed to keeping residents informed about its services and how to access them. For many, our services are a lifeline.”
“One of the ways we do this is by producing Your Somerset on a quarterly basis. We do encourage advertising, which is included in Your Somerset on a regular basis to help keep production costs down and to provide value for money.”
“We have also signed up to the Local Government Association’s reputation campaign, which recommends all local authorities produce a residents’ newsletter at least four times a year.”
