TEIGNBRIDGE Council has decided to carry on handing some of its assets over to towns and parishes despite fears that some can’t afford them.

The authority has moved to hand over a number of assets including play parks and public toilets to local councils, saying it is the best way to protect them for the future.

They fear under the forthcoming local government reorganisation (LGR), larger unitary councils that take over will not be able to maintain the most local assets and services.

Town and parish councils will be better placed to keep them open for the future.

But Cllr Stuart Rogers argued some communities would not be able to afford to take on the assets, and those that did could end up passing on the cost to local council tax payers. He called for a pause in the assets handover.

Dartmoor towns and parishes are particularly vulnerable, he said.

Because planning permissions were harder to come by inside the national park, he maintained, local councils had no access to the money developers are obliged to pay in return for consent to build.

‘A one-size-fits-all policy is not the answer for asset transfers. There are some wards that simply can’t afford it, and we should be looking for another way.,’ he said.

Cllr Chris Clarance said Shaldon residents had faced an increase in Band D council tax from £64 to £120 as a result of taking over toilets from Teignbridge.

‘There are a lot of people in Shaldon who are not wealthy,’ he said. ‘They are very upset about this.’

But Cllr David Cox urged the council to press on.

Council leader Richard Keeling said no parishes were being ‘press-ganged’ into taking on assets.

‘Some parishes want to take on assets, and they want to do it now,’ he said.

‘Some are willing partners to take on assets, because sometimes they can manage them better and more cheaply than we can.’

Cllr Rogers’ motion calling for a pause was defeated by 19 votes to 16.