TOURISM could be severely hit if Colchester Council closes toilets, it has been warned.

Tory councillors say the council risks sabotaging tourism hot- spots if plans to close loos in Dedham, West Mersea and Wivenhoe go ahead in April.

Colchester Council plans to close three toilet blocks in West Mersea, in Fairhaven, Coast Road and High Street, as well as toilets in Wivenhoe High Street and at The Drift, in Dedham, to save money.

A group of Conservative councillors has called for the decision to be re-thought.

In a statement, they said: “Those most in need of public toilets are babies, young children and the elderly.

“The proposed decision will adversely discriminate against these particular groups.

“There is a basic human right individuals should be able to relieve themselves in the privacy of a toilet, rather than having to urinate or defecate in public.”

The councillors say the closures could lead to an increase in the number people arrested for urinating in public having been caught short.

Dennis Willetts, who leads the Conservative group on Colchester Council, said more visitors go to Constable Country each year than to Colchester Castle, which is on course to hit 100,000 visitors in its first year since reopening in May.

He said: “Ten times that number go to Constable Country each year, so it is an important area from a tourism perspective and shouldn’t be somewhere which is losing facilities.

“It is facilities like public toilets that make days out much more comfortable.”

Colchester Council hopes Wivenhoe and West Mersea town councils and Dedham Parish Council could take over the running of the loos.

Negotiations have only just started with Wivenhoe Town Council. In a report due to go the Colchester Council scrutiny panel, council bosses said: “Many existing toilets are outdated and in poor condition.

“They are subject to vandalism and complaints about their cleanliness.

“A number of toilet blocks have outlived their usefulness and are located where demand is low.”

Any savings will be used to ease budget pressures. The scrutiny panel meeting was set to go ahead today, but has been postponed due to illness.

Beverly Davies, chairman, admitted more information on the decision, including details on how much is spent on the toilet blocks and how many people use them, would be required before “proper and effective” scrutiny could take place.

She has requested the figures before the issue is scrutinised in February.