TENDRING towns will be left in the dark at night after Town Hall bosses said they will not pay County Hall to switch them back on.

Campaigners have been left angry after being told their bid to have lights switched back on in urban areas such as Clacton and Harwich has now been “put to bed”.

Most lights are turned off by Essex County Council between 1am and 5am in a bid to save money following Government cuts.

But Tendring Council set aside £160,000 last year to pay the county council to switch streetlights back on across the district.

It had been hoped that lights could go back on in urban areas after a consultation found villagers in rural areas did not want them back on.

But County Hall has now said it would not accept an offer by the district council to pay for lights to go back on in specific areas.

Council leader Neil Stock said: “I wrote to the leader of Essex County Council to seek an agreement to this council’s proposals for the streetlights to be on all night in some wards and left off in others and if so what the annual cost of that would be to this council.

“I have had a clear response from the county council. It has concluded that districts who wish to see the lights reinstated will need to commit to the total cost of lighting.

“To define which streets are on or off, area and street by street, will be administratively costly and unworkable.”

“Frankly, we cannot afford to be putting on the streetlights across the district and asking the tax payers of Tendring to pay for it.”

Mr Stock said paying for all streetlights over the stipulated four-year term would lead to a disproportionately high increase in council tax for which residents have no appetite to pay. It is thought the bill would be in the region of £600,000.

He added: “It’s a county council function. They are the streetlighting authority - we are not.

“We should be asking them to put the lights back on, not expecting our own residents to pay for it. We cannot afford it.”

Streetlight campaigner Maureen Smith said the move showed councillors were not listening to residents.

“I am disgusted, but it doesn’t come as a surprise - we have not be listened to,” she said.

“They are increasing council tax but decreasing services – it’s ludicrous.

“We knew in October when Harlow had its lights switched back on that the county council would only agree to do it for the whole district.

“They have just wasted council taxpayers’ money by running further consultations and setting up working parties.

“We need our lighting on at night as it cuts the fear of crime.”

Labour group leader Ivan Henderson added: “The leader of Tendring Council has made it very clear in the proposed budget and cabinet meeting that they will not fund streetlights.

“There’s not much else we can do other than to keep campaigning for it at Essex County Council.

“Tendring Council keeps going out to consultation to ask what the public want, but then ignores them.”