Exasperated town councillors are demanding that Dawlish's Brook lights be turned on for Christmas, and are accusing the district council of 'holding them to ransom' over the cost of repairs they feel are unnecessary.

Feelings were running high at the town council meeting on Wednesday, December 2, after Teignbridge District Council said Dawlish would have to pay more than £1,500 to replace faulty bulbs and bring the lights back to full working order.

With Christmas shopping finally getting under way after the end of lockdown, the council agreed that it wanted to have the illuminations on immediately, faulty bulbs and all, and discuss the issue of repairs or replacements at a later stage.

Councillors said they were 'disgusted' and 'disappointed' with Teignbridge's handling of the issue, and voted unanimously to write a 'strongly-worded' letter to the district expressing their concerns.

Lights have been off since the summer

Dawlish's councillors have been unhappy with the district authority since it turned off the lights during the summer as a cost-saving measure during the Covid-19 pandemic, without consulting them. They have been asking for the lights to be reinstated ever since.

As Christmas approached, they stepped up their requests, only to be told that this would involve a survey of the lights' condition, costing £800, plus the cost of any necessary repair work and the £150 electricity bill.

Dawlish put forward no objection to paying for the electricity, and have also offered half of the survey costs – a total of £550.

But now they have been told that the survey indicated a cost of £1,520 for replacing 120 lamps and some defective globes, along with eight floodlights – and that Teignbridge is unable to fund this work because of the ongoing costs of Covid-19. The cost would fall upon the town council, along with the survey and electricity costs.

At Wednesday's meeting, angry town councillors dug in their heels and said they would not pay any more than the £550 already agreed.

Cllr Rosie Dawson said: "I'm really disappointed in Teignbridge and the way Dawlish has been treated since the beginning of this 'lights going off' fiasco."

She said she felt 'despondent' at the lack of communication from the district council, and that better collaboration was needed.

Cllr Val Mawhood said: "The lights are vital to this town and at this moment even more important than ever.

"To ask us for this cost is almost holding us to ransom, we are very close to Christmas, we are in the dark days of winter, we need to try to revive the town and revive everyone's spirits. I really think this is awful."

Councillors felt that the costly remedial work was not needed at this stage and it was suggested that the faulty lights could be replaced gradually, rather than all at once.

Should the town council take over the lights?

The town council also discussed the possibility of taking over ownership and management of the lights. They agreed that it would be far better for Dawlish to have control over when its lights were operational, but they did not want to enter into any arrangement without knowing the full costs and implications.

It was also felt that, for cost and environmental reasons, the lights should be converted to LED, but the expense to local taxpayers could not be justified in the current financial climate.

Summing up the town council's view, Cllr Martin Wrigley said: "I think it's imperative that we get these lights switched back on … but I also think the extra charge for replacing 120 lightbulbs with probably old-fashioned technology is ridiculous."

He said the town council should pay the originally agreed sum of £550, but should tell the district council there was no need for any remedial work unless there was a safety issue.

Cllr Wrigley said: "Let's get them switched on and then talk about how we take it forward.

"120 bulbs is not critical to getting the lights back on, so let's get on with it, let's do it."

The vote was unanimous in favour.